Far too often, it seems that we can complain all we want about politics, but nothing ever gets better.
But the 2024 election gives Arizonans a rare chance to actually improve our state’s politics.
If approved, Proposition 140 would establish one primary election that’s open to all registered voters. The top two vote-getters, regardless of their party affiliation, could face off in the general election. This would give us real choices, and better choices.
All registered voters would have the right to vote. The primary election would become a public election, not just for Democrats or Republicans. More than half of us no longer want to be associated with what the Democratic and Republican parties have become. Why should our taxes pay for primary elections to select their candidates, and then not have our votes matter much in the general election because the parties have used gerrymandering to make most districts uncompetitive?
The state’s 2022 congressional elections show just how ridiculous the state’s party primaries are. Between 8% and 21% of registered voters nominated the winning candidate in all nine Arizona congressional districts.
In each of those districts, one party or the other had stacked the deck so its primary winner was virtually assured of victory in the general election. Isn’t something wrong when as few as 8% of registered voters can effectively control an election? Yes, and the Democrat and Republican primaries are what’s wrong.
One primary election in which everybody can vote — without having to join any political party — would be less expensive for taxpayers and more representative for voters. That’s what Prop 140 will do. You could call it a “right to vote law.”
Elections that have been rigged over the years by both parties would finally be history, and good riddance! Both parties have made a mess of it. Now they’re opposed to Prop 140 because they like things just as they are: a mess. That’s why they’ve even proposed their own Prop 133 to keep things as they are: a mess.
It’s time for voters to matter again. We can clean up the mess. Open nonpartisan primary elections would give us better candidates, more competitive races and higher voter turnouts. Let’s seize this opportunity by voting NO on Prop 133 and YES on Prop 140.
Editor’s note: A former journalist, now retired in Scottsdale, Joe Smyth is the author of Fixing America’s Broken Politics. The opinions expressed here are his own. Reader reactions, pro or con, are welcomed at AzOpinions@iniusa.org.
