[GPCA Updates] RELEASE -- Ariz. Green Party files lawsuit over state election rule, after GOP manipulation of Green ballot line

Wed Sep 8 18:34:13 PDT 2010

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(Distributed by the Green Party of the United States, http://www.gp.org)

Arizona Green Party http://azgp.org

For immediate release: Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Statement from the Arizona Green Party: Lawsuit filed over Arizona election
statute, in the wake of news that Arizona Republican Party operatives
recruited candidates to run on the Green ballot line in the 2010 election

Today the Arizona Green Party filed its second lawsuit of this past year
against the State of Arizona over statutes which arbitrarily treat our party
differently than other political parties in Arizona, in ways that violates the
US constitution.  Both lawsuits are, of necessity, filed against multiple
defendants, of which the first named is Ken Bennett, in his capacity as
Secretary of State.  The first lawsuit was ruled in our favor in federal
court, after a hearing in January of this year, but both lawsuits bear the
caption Arizona Green Party v Bennett.

Today's lawsuit requests the invalidation of a statute which creates a
separate but unequal category of political party, that applies only to the
Arizona Green Party, in a way that mocks our substantial and consistent
efforts for two decades, against unreasonable barriers, to provide the voters
of Arizona with meaningful alternatives to politics as usual

Anyone can run for office in the Party of their choosing, if they get enough
signatures to show a decent level of support within the Party.  Or they can
run as a write-in candidate, and get the same number of write-in votes .  The
signatures or votes of party members is the "permission" that the party gives
for them to be our candidates .  Or, at least, that is the way that it is for
other political parties.  But ARS 16-645 creates a special category of
political party, that only the Green Party fits into, where an individual
doesn't have to get permission or support from anybody else in the party.
They can wait til the last minute to sign up as a write-in, and vote for
themselves in the primary, and they get their name listed on the general
election ballot as a Green Party candidate.

We want the ref to blow the whistle.  We in the Arizona Green Party want our
team to play by the same rules as other teams, and not have somebody in the
stands deciding to be a player on our team.  And especially not have our
opponents recruiting field-rushers, handing them a uniform, and sending them
out to disrupt a fair game.

So we are going to court, demanding the fairness that the US Constitution
grants us, and putting a stop to sham candidates and special rules.  Because
we already HAVE a team, of real candidates, endorsed by us, who followed the
rules, and gathered their signatures twice already-- once from the general
public to be a recognized political party, and a second time from party
members, to show that Greens support their candidacy, and support the message
they will be running on, in trying to offer the public new and better ideas
than they can find elsewhere.  Or old, forgotten ideas, like fair-play and
Constitutional rights.

The relief asked for in the lawsuit is:

1. declaring that ARS 16-645 D is unconstitutional both on its face, and as
applied to the Arizona Green Party.

2, applying the same requirements to our party as are applied to all other
recognized political parties

3. preliminarily and permanently restraining all the election officials, in
their official capacity, from placing any names of unendorsed write-in
candidates on the ballot

4. paying our lawyers.

The Arizona Party is proud to showcase our endorsed candidates:

• Jerry Joslyn: U.S. Senate
• Kent Solberg: State Representative (LD 27)
• Linda Macias: State Representative (LD 21)
• Angel Torres: State Representative (LD 16)
• Luisa Valdez: State Representative (LD 15)
• Justin Dahl: State Representative (LD 12)
• Gregor Knauer: State Representative (LD 17)
• Rebecca DeWitt: U.S. Congress (CD 4)