The Arizona Supreme Court could get two new justices thanks to a bill making its way through the Legislature.
The bill, which passed on a 33-26 vote Wednesday, would bring the court to seven justices. The legislation is sponsored by Republican Representative J.D. Mesnard of Gilbert.
The current court has justices appointed under current Republican Gov. Doug Ducey, and previous governors, Jan Brewer, a Republican, and Janet Napolitano, a Democrat. Governor Ducey would appoint the two new justices.
An Arizona Supreme Court spokeswoman said this would not be the first time the number of supreme court justices has changed in Arizona. When it became a state in 1912, there were only three justices on the court. The spokeswoman said it’s unclear when the number grew to five.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
