Arizonans fought to get minimum wage and abortion on the ballot. What's next?
Amanda LubertoAt the end of July, Arizonans will vote in the primary election to say who will represent them for the Republican and Democratic parties. But the work is already underway on the ballot for the November general election.
A legislative panel signed off on the language that describes what ballot propositions would do, and last week, supporters of three citizen initiatives brought in petitions with a combined 1.8 million voter signatures.
Arizonans decided that abortion access, a minimum wage increase and the opportunity to create open primaries were topics they wanted to vote on in November.
These citizen initiatives, if they qualify for the ballot, could bring the number of statewide ballot propositions to 15, not to mention local propositions, such as a transportation tax extension in Maricopa County.
What citizen initiatives could make your election ballot
Probably the highest profile measure is the Arizona Abortion Access Act, which would enshrine the right to an abortion in the state constitution. Supporters gathered what is believed to be a record number of signatures for this initiative.
Backers also filed boxes of petitions seeking to create open primaries, which would allow independents to vote in primary elections, and to boost the state’s minimum wage to nearly $18 an hour by 2027.
All three are currently under review to ensure there were enough valid signatures to make the ballot in November.
This week on The Gaggle, a politics podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, host Mary Jo Pitzl is joined by state politics reporters Stacey Barchenger and Ray Stern to discuss the citizen initiatives that collected enough signatures and the likelihood you'll see them on the November ballot.
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Reach the producer Amanda Luberto at aluberto@gannett.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter @amandaluberto.