Court Battle Erupts Over AZ Open Primary and Rank Choice Voting Initiative

By Matthew Holloway |

On Friday, the Arizona Free Enterprise Club (AZFEC) filed a lawsuit against the State of Arizona, Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, and the ‘Make Elections Fair’ political committee. The lawsuit challenges an initiative aimed at implementing open primaries, ranked choice voting, and eliminating public funding in partisan elections on the November ballot as a single item. AZFEC and three co-plaintiffs argue that the initiative, known as The Make Elections Fair Arizona Act, violates the Arizona Constitution’s “Separate Amendment Rule,” which prohibits combining multiple constitutional amendments into a single ballot measure.

AZFEC released a statement stating, “If placed on the ballot and approved by voters, the Make Elections Fair Arizona Act would radically change how Arizonans select and approve candidates for public office, essentially copying the California voting system.”

The organization asserts that the Act comprises twelve separate amendments. According to AZFEC, it impacts three distinct areas of Arizona election law, directly amends four different sections of the Arizona Constitution, and introduces a completely new section.

BREAKING: We just filed a lawsuit against the Make Elections Fair Arizona Act (which would essentially copy the California voting system) because it contains multiple separate constitutional amendments in violation of the Arizona Constitution. https://t.co/SZdu3h3aRV

— Arizona Free Enterprise Club (@azfec) July 26, 2024

Scot Mussi, President of the Arizona Free Enterprise Club, commented, “In their rush to undermine the will of Arizona voters for future elections, the special interests that drafted this measure ignored our laws and our Constitution. This egregious disregard for law and order exudes arrogance from these parties and should disqualify their measure from the November ballot.”

In the AZFEC’s complaint, attorneys referenced Article XXI, Section 1 of the Arizona Constitution, which mandates that multiple proposed amendments must be submitted separately to allow voters to vote on each amendment individually. Past decisions by the Arizona Supreme Court have upheld the single-subject rule to prevent “log-rolling,” which forces voters to support measures they may oppose in order to pass ones they favor.

The complaint notes that the drafters of the initiative themselves acknowledged the multiple amendments in a now-defunct section of their website titled “Initiative Language,” where they presented the amendments in four distinct categories, each addressing different issues.

The plaintiffs seek a court declaration that the initiative violates the state constitution and request a mandamus order to compel Secretary of State Adrian Fontes to adhere to the Separate Amendment Rule.

As reported by the Arizona Mirror, the Make Elections Fair Arizona Act has already faced legal battles over the descriptive language used for the initiative on the November 2024 ballot. The dispute involved the initiative’s language on voter rankings and primary election procedures, which some argue is misleading.

The Arizona Free Enterprise Club’s legal action could impact how the measure is presented to voters and whether it appears on the November ballot at all. The outcome of this case may have far-reaching implications for Arizona’s election laws and procedures.

Matthew Holloway is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.