Element “span” is missing one or more of the following attributes: “aria-checked”, “aria-level”, “role”.

The aria-expanded attribute requires the element to have an appropriate role attribute (or be an element that natively implies one). A <span> is a generic inline element with no implicit ARIA role, so you must explicitly assign a role when using ARIA state attributes like aria-expanded.

The aria-expanded attribute indicates whether a grouping element controlled by this element is currently expanded or collapsed. It is only valid on elements with specific roles such as button, link, combobox, menuitem, or other widget roles. When a <span> uses aria-expanded without a role, validators flag it because there's no semantic context for that state.

Since this element toggles a dropdown menu and has aria-label, aria-controls, and aria-expanded, the most appropriate role is button. This tells assistive technologies that the element is interactive and can be activated.

Also note that when using role="button" on a non-interactive element like <span>, you should ensure it is focusable by adding tabindex="0" and that it handles keyboard events (Enter and Space keys).

HTML Examples

❌ Invalid: aria-expanded on a span without a role

<span class="navbar-dropdown-icon"
  aria-expanded="false"
  aria-label="List options"
  aria-controls="dropdown-menu-item-1-1menu-item-2-6"
  data-toggle="dropdown">
</span>

✅ Valid: adding role="button" and tabindex="0"

<span class="navbar-dropdown-icon"
  role="button"
  tabindex="0"
  aria-expanded="false"
  aria-label="List options"
  aria-controls="dropdown-menu-item-1-1menu-item-2-6"
  data-toggle="dropdown">
</span>

✅ Better: use a <button> element instead

<button class="navbar-dropdown-icon"
  type="button"
  aria-expanded="false"
  aria-label="List options"
  aria-controls="dropdown-menu-item-1-1menu-item-2-6"
  data-toggle="dropdown">
</button>

Using a native <button> is preferred because it is focusable and keyboard-accessible by default, without needing role or tabindex.

Learn more:

MDN Reference

MDN Web Docs — ARIA: role attribute

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MDN Reference

MDN Web Docs — aria-checked

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MDN Reference

MDN Web Docs — aria-level

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