Grand Canyon Times

Arizona's Senate Government Committee is investigating a rule adopted this year by the Clean Elections Commission. The rule prevents certain qualified Arizona candidates from participating in general election debates for statewide and federal offices.

According to a press release by the Arizona Senate Republicans, there is a question on whether the rule was legally enacted. A letter sent to the commission by Committee Chairman Jake Hoffman outlines a possible violation when it approved the rule. The rule requires candidates to receive a minimum of 1% of total ballots cast in all primaries to qualify for general election debates. The press release states that this essentially bans some political parties' candidates from participating in general election debates.

The committee asserts that a comprehensive review determined the rule was not submitted to the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council (GRRC) for approval, which the Arizona Administrative Procedures Act requires. According to the committee, this oversight violates Proposition 306.

"At best, the Clean Elections Commission seems to be creatively, yet intentionally, blocking some candidates from participating in the debate, not to mention subverting the will of the voters to require proper transparency in agency actions through the Administrative Procedures Act," Hoffman stated in the press release. "At worst, the taxpayer-funded Commission has knowingly broken the law."

According to a report published by KJZZ Phoenix, the rule extends to 16 debates this year. These debates, co-hosted by the Clean Elections Commission and the Arizona Media Association, encompass key federal races, ballot initiatives and state and county races.

Eduardo Quintana, a Green Party U.S. Senate candidate, has already been barred from an October debate due to this rule. "The 1% rule made it virtually impossible for Green Party candidates to qualify for Clean Elections’ debates because the party—which only regained state recognition in December—only has about 3,300 registered voters statewide," KJZZ Phoenix reported.