You may read the transcript of today's oral arguments before the SCOTUS in state Sen. John McComish's attack on the cleanliness of elections in Arizona. Thanks to new friend Phoenix Justice for providing the link.
Phoenix Justice believes it's already a done deal, that the Roberts court will strike down the VOTER APPROVED matching funds provision in Arizona's Clean Elections Law.
He might end up being right in his prediction. However, for now and even if it does happen, the Arizona Eagletarian will focus on advocating for the right of voters to have maximum available information, especially from candidates who are NOT bought and paid for.
Will McComish (R-Fat Cats and Corporations, not necessarily in LD20) recognize the shame that rightfully belongs to him for this?
Some have expressed concern about whether Clean Elections funding is responsible for the move of Arizona's state legislature so far to the right. Implementation of Clean Elections does coincide with the rise of, for example, Russell Pearce's "Tea Party Senate." However, other factors are probably more responsible.
Because of the lack of competitive districts enacted in the 2001 redistricting process, I have been following the process as it begins again this year. Clean Elections and Independent Redistricting were both voter initiatives. There's plenty to debate about the motives of the voters and the authors, not to mention the ramifications of these ballot measures.
But let's get redistricting done right in Arizona this year.
The next meeting of Arizona's Independent Redistricting Commission is scheduled for Thursday, March 31, at 9:30am. At the end of the last meeting, the commissioners expressed desire to meet at the Carnegie Library, 1101 W Washington, Phoenix. If the location changes, I'll update the blog.
Yes, part of the blame for the rise of politicians such as Senator Pearce and his ilk can be laid at the feet of the Clean Elections law, but only a small part.
ReplyDeleteI agree it is mostly due to the fact that the vast majority of voting districts in Arizona are not competitive. What is not truly factored in is the propensity of "independents" to vote Republican. Even though a district might look like it has a majority of Democrats over Republicans, the "independents" do tend to vote Republican in Arizona.
So we get an imbalance and "safe" districts for Republicans that was not the original intent. I hope the IRC takes into consideration the tendency of "independents" to vote Republican when redrawing districts.