FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 8, 2008

Contact:   Scott Brannon 480-201-2162 /
Geannie Schroeder - 928-537-7699

GRAND CANYON INDEPENDENT VOTERS

STATEMENT TO HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Grand Canyon Independent Voters and its supporters urge the House Judiciary Committee to vote to allow SB 1015, Presidential Preference Election/Early Voting, to proceed to the floor for a vote by the full House.

Arizona has over 725,000 voters registered as Independents or as unaffiliated to any of the three recognized parties, 27% of the state's electorate.  Independents are the largest growing segment of registered voters in Arizona.  Independents pay taxes and deserve to have the right to vote in the Presidential Preference Election.  Independents are allowed to vote in all other primaries held in Arizona but are denied access to the ballot box in ultimately the most important primary, the presidential primary.

The State of Arizona remains one of only 18 states that disenfranchise voters by not having open primaries.  The time has come for Arizona to join the majority of states and open its primaries to independent and unaffiliated voters.  The Senate passed this bill by a 27-0 margin with three members not voting.  We call on the Committee to not ignore the Senate's unanimous action and send SB 1015 forward where it can receive the attention of all House members.

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TESTIMONY SUBMITTED BY
Evonda Copeland
A Concerned Voter of District 8, and an Executive Member of the Grand Canyon Independent Voters
azindievoter@yahoo.com

Dear Representatives Michele Reagan and John Kavanagh,

As a voting member of District 8, I would like to strongly encourage you to support SB1015 regarding presidential preference elections.  This bill, once a law, will open up the presidential preference elections to independent and unaffiliated voters in Arizona. 

Nearly 30% of all Arizona registered voters are independent-minded voters who choose to remain unaffiliated with a political party.  To simplify – that's almost 1 in 3 voters!  That figure has doubled since 2000, and I think it's safe to say that this savvy and sophisticated group will continue to grow in the years to come.  To exclude such a huge portion of the voting base, to me, seems unconstitutional.  I can already hear the cries, "taxation without representation", for we are tax-paying citizens who currently have no voice in a taxpayer-funded presidential preference election process.

Citizens are always told how even just one voice – one vote – can make a difference.  Imagine the impact - the sheer decibels - of some 750,000 independent voices declaring in unison the case for an open presidential preference election!  I think it behooves Democrats and Republicans alike to not only take notice of this unanimous independent voice but also make a real effort to reach out to independent voters. 

Some people might say - and have said - that these voters have chosen to disenfranchise themselves by remaining outside the current political party system.  I think most of us can agree – whether Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, or "unaffiliated" – that with the way partisan politics has bogged down government operations at the state and national levels, the time for change is well at hand.  And independent voters voice their discontent over a broken system by registering as an unaffiliated voter - an act of protest against the gridlock, the partisanship, and the corruption that we all know exists in government today. 

By supporting SB1015, you are in essense supporting the independent voters in your district and in this state, and making a truly nonpartisan effort.  An effort for which your constituents will thank you and applaud you in the years ahead.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank House Judiciary Committee chair, Representative Eddie Farnsworth, for ensuring that SB1015 be added to the committee's agenda.   And a generous thank you to Representative Mark DeSimone (sponsor of HB2651) and Senator Chuck Gray (sponsor of SB1015 and SB1405) for their continued & courageous support of independent voters throughout the state - a cause that while not especially popular is nevertheless an important one.  My hope is that your continued support of the Arizona independent voices – all 750,000 of them - will help move SB1015 to a vote on the House floor and, eventually, into the law books.

Sincerely,

Evonda Copeland
A Concerned Voter of District 8, and
an Executive Member of the Grand Canyon Independent Voters
azindievoter@yahoo.com

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TESTIMONY BEFORE THE HOUSE JUDCIARY COMMITTEE

APRIL 10, 2008

By Harry Kresky, Esq.

             The Committee for a Unified Independent Party (CUIP) strongly urges passage of SB 1015. CUIP is a national strategy center and organizing hub working to create independent voter associations to project the voice of the 40% of the electorate that considers itself independent.

We understand that the Bill passed the Arizona Senate by a vote of 27-0 with 3 members not voting, and is now under consideration by the Judiciary Committee of the House. SB 1015 would open presidential primaries in the State to independent voters, as well as those enrolled in a party that is not running a presidential candidate. If the measure passes, AZ would join the 33 other states that have open primaries for the office of President of the United States.

            The Bill would allow a party to opt out and continue to have a closed primary. In this respect it does not go as far as the State of Washington which in 2004 passed a referendum that opened its primaries for state and federal office over the opposition of the State's major parties. The law would allow a candidate to list his or her party preference on a ballot to be voted on by all of the State's voters, with the top two vote getters advancing to a runoff. The U.S. Supreme Court recently upheld the measure. Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican, 128 S.Ct. 1184 (2008). Oregon residents are currently petitioning to place a similar referendum on the ballot in November.

            It is true that, without SB 1015, political parties in Arizona could choose to open their primaries. The U.S. Supreme Court has recognized the right of a party to do so in Tashjian v. Republican Party of Conn., 479 U.S. 208, 216, 107 S.Ct. 544 (1986). One might ask, therefore, what SB 1015 really adds to the mix as a party can still opt out. However, from the vantage of the Arizona's 725,000 independent voters, the difference is significant. SB 1015 would put the State on record as recognizing the need for open primaries and the need to end the lockout of 27 percent of its electorate from participating fully in the process of choosing a president.

            A party that opted out would do so at its peril. The statement "we do not want your participation" would not be forgotten by independents when it came to the general election.

            This year has seen the dramatic impact of independent voters. Arizona's own Senator John McCain would surely not have won the Republican Party nomination without the support of independent voters in open primary states. Likewise, our research shows that independents are responsible for Barack Obama's lead in the popular vote in the battle for the Democratic Party nomination.

            This is more than a matter of candidates, however. What is evident is that the opening of primaries to independent voters has enabled the candidate challenging the status quo to advance. Reform-minded independents, a significant number of whom are young people, provide an important counterweight to machine dominated politics as usual.

This is good for America and its democracy. Passage of SB 1015 would be another important step forward.