Two new election law bills in Arizona are: (1) SB 1429, which would abolish the presidential primary, but wouldn’t take effect until 2016; and (2) SB 1449, which would change the recall process to the system used in Wisconsin. The effect of filing a valid recall petition would be to force a special election for that particular office, and the incumbent being recalled would be a candidate in the special election if he or she wished. As in Wisconsin, there would be a partisan special primary election followed by a partisan special general election. Thanks to Frontloading HQ for the news about the presidential primary bill.

There seems to be no Arizona bill to provide that all qualified parties should be listed on the voter registration form. Last year the legislature passed a law that says only the two largest parties should be listed on the form. Voters who wanted to register into any other party, even a qualified party, would need to write it in. The Libertarian and Green Parties sued against that new law, and on February 13 the state answered the complaint and seems ready to defend the existing law.