On the evening of June 13, the Arizona legislature passed HB 2305, an omnibus election law bill. Among other provisions, it makes it very difficult for members of small qualified parties to get on their own party’s primary ballot. It changes the base, for the signature calculation, from a percentage of how many registered votes that party has, to the number of all registered voters in all parties. A statewide candidate would need over 5,000 signatures, but only party members and independents could sign. The Green Party has fewer than 6,000 registered voters.

The House vote was 33-26; the Senate vote was 16-13.

This bill has many enemies, because other parts of the bill adversely impact voting rights in other ways. A campaign is on to ask Governor Jan Brewer to veto the bill. Opponents of the bill are asking individuals to telephone the Governor’s office at 602-542-4331 and choose option “4”. An employee of the Governor’s office will then answer, and the message can be delivered.

On June 13, the Rhode Island legislature passed SB 346/HB 5575, the National Popular Vote Plan bill. The plan had actually passed in the last session, but the Governor had vetoed it. Rhode Island’s current Governor, Lincoln Chafee, says he supports the Plan.

Assuming it is signed into law in Rhode Island, the plan will have passed in ten jurisdictions. The others are California, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont, and Washington.

The Star-Tribune of Casper, Wyoming, in this editorial, suggests that the state’s procedures for initiatives and referenda are too difficult, although the editorial also warns that procedures should not be made too easy.