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GOP border ballot initiative headed to Arizona Supreme Court

Man ins uit speaks at podium
Stella Subasic/Cronkite News
Jim Barton, attorney for LUCHA, speaks at a news conference in Phoenix, on June 5, 2024.

Proposition 314 would make it a state crime to enter Arizona by crossing the state’s border with Mexico outside of a legal port of entry, and it would empower local and state law enforcement to arrest people for violating that law.

Living United for Change in Arizona (LUCHA), Poder in Action and other groups argued the proposal, referred to the ballot by Republican lawmakers, runs afoul of the state Constitution, claiming it deals with a broad range of unrelated topics.

Specifically, the groups claimed separate sections dealing with illegal border crossings and fentanyl trafficking violate a state constitutional provision requiring individual pieces of legislation to stick to a single subject.

But, last week, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Scott Minder disagreed. He found all parts of the bill related to problems resulting from an unsecured border.

Jim Barton, an attorney for LUCHA, said the plaintiffs have filed an appeal with the Arizona Supreme Court.

The Arizona Secretary of State’s Office said the case must be resolved by Aug. 22 so ballots can be printed, according to a scheduling order signed by Supreme Court Justice Kathryn King.

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Wayne Schutsky is a broadcast field correspondent covering Arizona politics on KJZZ. He has over a decade of experience as a journalist reporting on local communities in Arizona and the state Capitol.