Did the Navajo County recorder appointment violate the Arizona constitution?

The Arizona Attorney General’s Office is looking at whether the Navajo County Board of Supervisors violated the state constitution when it named lawmaker David Marshall the next county recorder.

The Board of Supervisors picked Marshall on Tuesday to fill the recorder vacancy created after Republican Timothy Jordan resigned in February.

Marshall is currently a member of the Arizona House of Representatives and would have to resign to accept the appointment. However, some critics believe Marshall is ineligible for the appointment, whether or not he resigns.

That’s because the Arizona Constitution says that state lawmakers cannot hold other state and county offices “during the term for which he shall have been elected.”

Republican election attorney Kory Langhofer told KJZZ that Marshall simply needs to resign from the Legislature to fulfill that requirement.

But, in the past, some elected officials have interpreted that phrase to mean legislators cannot hold another position until after a new Legislature is seated. In Marshall’s case, that would mean he has to wait until the next legislative session, which will start in January.

But there is little legal precedent to rely on to determine which interpretation is correct.

A spokesman for Attorney General Kris Mayes said the office is not aware of any attorney general opinions on the subject, either. But, on Wednesday, Mayes said her office is looking into the matter.

“So what I would say about that is, we're taking a look at it,” Mayes said.

She declined to comment further, saying she did not want to “prejudge” the issue.

“I'm going to reserve any additional comments on it, because it's possible that could end up at our office,” Mayes said.

A spokesperson for County Attorney Brad Carlyon referred questions about the appointment to a spokesperson for the county, who did not respond.

But Carlyon told Axios Phoenix that he forgot about the constitutional provision until after the vote and that he informed Marshall that he could face a court challenge if he accepts the appointment.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Marshall had not resigned from the Legislature.

“No new information,” said Andrew Wilder, a spokesman for House Republicans.

Marshall has not responded to several emails, phone calls and in-person requests seeking comment on his future plans.

That includes whether he plans to drop his candidacy for the Arizona Corporation Commission, the state’s top utility regulator. Marshall is currently running for the commission on a ticket with Rep. Ralph Heap (R-Mesa) in an attempt to unseat incumbent Republican Commissioners Nick Myers and Kevin Thompson.

Langhofer, the elections attorney, said Marshall can’t hold the recorder position and run for the commission at the same time.