Legislators ask voters to reconsider measures they?re already voted on

February 15, 2012

Three experts talk about Governor Jan Brewer and legislators who want to ask voters to eliminate measures they’re already approved, including the Independent Redistricting Commission and Clean Elections.

Jennifer Steen, associate professor of political science at Arizona State, talks about the redistricting session and says it’s an appropriate time to look at how the committee works or doesn’t work and to take action accordingly. Steen says most of the public outrage has come from legislators and not citizens, so we should be skeptical. Steen says stakes are high and that's why the battle has been so intense. The impact of new maps lasts for ten years, and since Arizona is a very dynamic state with people coming and going, distribution will change significantly by the end of the decade.

Jackie Thrasher, former Democratic member of the state House of Representatives, says that legislators are trying to undermine the voters and make a power grab by repealing the redistricting committee and other measure. Kurt Davis, a partner in the public affairs firm First Strategic, says that it make sense to repeal the measure because the committee was an attempt to depoliticize redistricting, which is inherently political. They also touch on civility, term limits, Clean Elections, and other election reforms.