Rivals Challenge Judge’s Ruling on Arizona Border Ballot Initiative

Latino advocacy groups are contesting a judge’s decision to approve a GOP ballot measure that would allow local police to imprison migrants. This is a last-ditch effort to prevent the measure from going to voters this fall.

“Proposition 314 has no place on the ballot box,” stated Alejandra Gomez, executive director of Living United for Change in Arizona (LUCHA). “We urge the Arizona Supreme Court to hear our case and deny this proposition on constitutional grounds.”

Last month, Arizona Republicans advanced Proposition 314, known as the “Secure the Border Act,” to the November ballot. The proposal, similar to a Texas immigration law currently under judicial review, criminalizes migrants crossing Arizona’s southern border outside official ports of entry, with first-time offenders facing up to six months in jail.

Four organizations, including LUCHA, Poder in Action, the Phoenix Legal Action Network, and the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project, swiftly lodged a legal challenge. They argue that its provisions are too varied to meet the state constitution’s single-subject rule, which mandates that all ballot measures focus on one topic. Besides criminalizing migrants, it penalizes undocumented Arizonans for submitting fraudulent documentation when seeking jobs or public benefits with a class 6 felony. It also establishes a new felony offense with harsher prison sentences for knowingly selling fentanyl that results in death. GOP lawmakers claim all provisions aim to address the “harms” of an “unsecured” southern border.

On July 12, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Scott Minder sided with GOP leaders, defending the act’s constitutionality. Minder’s 11-page ruling affirmed that the overall theme of an “unsecured” border meets the single-subject rule’s requirements.

Gomez condemned the proposal as “stop and frisk on steroids” and called on the Arizona Supreme Court to overturn Minder’s ruling. She emphasized that the act combines at least five different bills, indicating multiple subjects. The act includes one bill vetoed by Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs and four others stalled in the legislature.

“This is a package of already failed and vetoed legislation that violates the single-subject rule,” Gomez remarked. “The Stop and Frisk bill will disproportionately target Arizonans, leading to suspicion and persecution. This discriminatory legislation will result in over-policing in every community across our state.”

Critics liken the “Secure the Border Act” to SB1070, Arizona’s controversial “show me your papers law,” which allowed police to check the citizenship status of individuals during routine traffic stops. They warn of increased racial profiling if the measure is approved in November.