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Arizona Supreme Court Justice Brutinel to retire
Justice Robert Brutinel will retire from the Arizona Supreme Court at the end of October, he announced Tuesday. His retirement means that Gov. Katie Hobbs will get to appoint his replacement, making her the first Democrat to appoint a justice to the high court in more than 15 years. Brutinel, who was appointed to the […]
Moms sue Dept. of Ed over ESA requirements demanded by Arizona AG
Two Arizona mothers are suing the state Department of Education over curriculum requirements for the school voucher program that Attorney General Kris Mayes has instructed the department to enforce. The Empowerment Scholarship Account, or ESA program, works by giving the parents of participating students a debit card that can be used to pay for various […]
Arizona AG gives clarity on portion of voter registration law SCOTUS let be enforced
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has provided guidance to the state’s county recorders on how to handle a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court that changed the state’s voter registration law just 10 weeks before the election. The nation’s high court on Aug. 22 ruled that Arizona can enforce part of a voter registration law […]
Campaigns battle over the fate of 2 AZ Supreme Court justices who ushered in the 1864 abortion ban
Judicial retention elections usually aren’t the sexiest items on the ballot, but this year two campaigns are fighting to persuade voters to either retain or throw out two Arizona Supreme Court justices. At the same time, voters will be considering a constitutional amendment that would essentially give judges lifetime appointments. Justices Clint Bolick and Kathryn […]
Campaign funds can be used for child care, AG Kris Mayes says
Arizona candidates for public office can use their campaign funds to pay for child care needs while they are campaigning, Attorney General Kris Mayes said in a legal opinion. The Sept.16 opinion places the Grand Canyon State among 34 other states, along with Washington D.C., in allowing candidates to pay for child care costs with […]
AZ Supreme Court takes back direction not to count votes for Prop 140, if it’s disqualified
With fewer than two months to go until the election, uncertainty still surrounds the fate of a ballot measure that would ask voters to do away with Arizona’s partisan primary elections. And the Arizona Supreme Court just added to the confusion. On Monday, the state’s high court vacated a statement from its Aug. 23 ruling […]
The path to victory in AZ for Kamala Harris and Democrats run through the suburbs
Democrats have made huge inroads with suburban voters in Arizona since 2016, when Donald Trump won the presidency, leveraging their support to not just take back the presidency in 2020, but to outperform expectations in the 2018 and 2022 midterms. And the Harris-Walz campaign has boots on the ground in Arizona in an effort to […]
Challengers in Make Elections Fair case accuse Fontes of double standard
The challengers to the Make Elections Fair Act say that the Arizona Secretary of State’s arguments that the voters, not the courts, should decide the fate of the proposed constitutional amendment should be stricken from the court record. Daniel Arellano, an attorney representing the challengers, also claimed that Secretary of State Adrian Fontes had recently […]
Fontes: Voters should decide fate of Prop 140, not the courts
Secretary of State Adrian Fontes told the Arizona Supreme Court on Friday that voters, and not the courts, should decide the fate of the Make Elections Fair Act. With ballots in many Arizona counties already sent to the printers, there’s no question that Proposition 140, as the proposed constitutional amendment is known, will be on […]
Women who had abortion access when they needed it fight for future generations
A generation of Arizona women who were young when Roe v. Wade was decided and who believe their lives were saved by the landmark abortion rights decision are fighting for their children and grandchildren to have those same rights. Val Smith remembers when her 15-year-old neighbor — a year older than her — had to […]
Judge gives OK: Hobbs agrees to nominate new state agency directors
A judge on Tuesday signed off on an agreement between Gov. Katie Hobbs and Republican legislative leaders, in which she consented to nominate directors for several state agencies early next year. The agreement followed a lawsuit filed in December by Senate President Warren Petersen, a Queen Creek Republican, who accused Hobbs of violating state law […]
Ethical complaints against attorneys representing Kari Lake dismissed
Two attorneys who represented Kari Lake in a bid to get tabulators banned from the 2022 election will not face discipline for their claims in that case, a disciplinary panel ordered on Monday. Presiding Disciplinary Judge Margaret Downie authored the ruling of a three-member panel which dismissed the complaints. The dismissal follows a three-day hearing […]