An Arizona Republican legislator continues to hold a government agency accountable to the law.
Last week, State Senator Jake Hoffman sent a letter to the Arizona Clean Elections Commission, which was his second letter to this agency, over a new rule it had adopted “requiring candidates to receive at least 1% of total ballots cast in all primaries for their office to qualify for general election debates.” Hoffman’s latest letter called on the Commission “to submit the rule through the standard rule-making process and to invite all qualified candidates to general election debates until any new rules are appropriately adopted in a transparent and lawful manner.”
🚨 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Senate Government Committee Calls on Clean Elections Commission to Comply with State Law on Rule Change for General Election Debates
In a statement, Hoffman said, “Arizona law only gives the Commission discretion to determine the manner in which debates are conducted. It does not give the Commission unfettered discretion to pick and choose which candidates get to participate. If the Commission believes this rule is a good idea, then there should be nothing to fear from holding an open and public process for promulgating rules. Evading this process invites litigation, calls into question the independence of the Commission, and deprives Arizona citizens of the protections afforded under the APA.”
The issue that prompted the initial inquiry by Hoffman was the confirmation from the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission that Eduardo Quintana, the Green Party candidate for U.S. Senate, would not be allowed in the upcoming October debate with Republican Kari Lake and Democrat Ruben Gallego. Quintana received 282 votes in the primary – far less than the one percent threshold established by the Commission.
Hoffman has contended that due to the Commission’s rule not being “submitted for approval to the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council for compliance with the Arizona Administrative Procedures Act, [the] maneuver violates the 2018 voter-approved Proposition 306.”
Thomas Collins, the Executive Director of the Commission, sent a letter in response to Hoffman’s first inquiry. He said, in part, that the report of the new rule “mischaracterizes a discretionary decision by the Commission, based on input from its contracted debate production and broadcast consultants, to not include the candidates who had received less than 1% of votes cast in their primaries in the 2024 Commission-sponsored debates.” Collins added, “It is both factually inaccurate and inconsistent with the APA requirements to characterize this decision as adoption of a new ‘rule’ for purposes of the APA.”
Collins’ letter prompted this most recent letter from Hoffman, who argued against the Commission’s justification for its action. Hoffman wrote, “You are sorely mistaken if you expected the serious concerns raised in my letter to be assuaged by a lengthy letter filled with fluff about why you think it’s a good idea to remove candidates from state-recognized parties from public debates. While these policy arguments may be convincing to you, it is really beside the point. I shouldn’t need to remind you that the Commission, as part of the executive branch, implements legislative policy – it does not set it.”
Hoffman concluded his communication to the agency, stating, “Because Arizona requires the Commission to ‘sponsor debates among candidates’ and the Green party candidate certainly meets Arizona’s liberal definition of ‘candidate,’ the only conceivable way the Commission could exclude a Green Party candidate from participating would be through a duly passed rule that complies with Arizona’s APA. This, however, the Commission has not done.”
After Hoffman’s newest letter to the Commission, the Arizona Green Party posted the following to its X account: “By barring the Green Party candidates for statewide & federal offices in Arizona from the televised debates over an arbitrary rule, we believe that the Arizona Clean Elections Commission has violated A.R.S. 16-192, which prohibits the use of public resources to influence the outcome of an election. The commission has used taxpayer dollars to present a false, binary choice between Democrats and Republicans in the races for Senate, Congress, and AZ Corp. Commission. This action deprives AZ voters of the knowledge that they have other options, which WILL influence the outcome.”
By barring the #GreenParty candidates for statewide & federal offices in #Arizona from the televised debates over an arbitrary rule, we believe that the @AZCCEC has violated A.R.S. 16-192, which prohibits the use of public resources to influence the outcome of an election.
The Arizona Green Party also stated, “The Arizona Clean Elections Commission & the AZ Media Association, a private entity interested in profit rather than providing the people of Arizona with all perspectives from all parties, are favoring the duopoly candidates in these races over the grassroots & non-corporate Green Party candidates. Following the lead of candidates such as Quintana for Senate, the AZGP is currently in the process of filing official election complaints on these grounds.”
The @AZCCEC & the AZ Media Association, a private entity interested in profit rather than providing the people of #Arizona with all perspectives from all parties, are favoring the duopoly candidates in these races over the grassroots & non-corporate #GreenParty candidates.
Republicans in the Arizona Senate are looking for answers about a new rule from the Clean Elections Commission.
Last week, State Senator Jake Hoffman sent a letter to the Arizona Clean Elections Commission about the adoption of a “new rule blocking certain qualified Arizona candidates from participating in general election debates for statewide and federal offices.” In his letter, Hoffman writes that “this rule was not submitted for approval to the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council (GRRC) under the Arizona Administrative Procedures Act,” potentially violating Proposition 306, which was passed by state voters in November 2018.
🚨FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Senate Government Committee Investigates Unlawful Rule Change Blocking Qualified Candidates from Participating in General Election Debates
The issue that prompted the inquiry by Hoffman was the confirmation from the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission that Eduardo Quintana, the Green Party candidate for U.S. Senate, would not be allowed in the upcoming October debate with Republican Kari Lake and Democrat Ruben Gallego. The rule from the Commission stipulates that candidates for public office must obtain at least one percent of all ballots tabulated in primaries for their specific office in order to maintain eligibility for general election debates. Quintana received 282 votes in the primary – far less than the one percent threshold established by the Commission.
“At best, the Clean Elections Commission seems to be creatively, yet intentionally, blocking some candidates from participating in the debate, not to mention subverting the will of the voters to require proper transparency in agency actions through the Administrative Procedures Act,” said Chairman Hoffman. “At worst, the taxpayer-funded Commission has knowingly broken the law. Either action offends the non-partisan intent of the Clean Elections Act. Voters deserve an explanation from the Commission as to why the intent, or the actual text, of the voter-approved Prop 306 was ignored by the Commission.”
Senator Hoffman gave credit to KJZZ for its reporting that appeared to alert him to this issue.
According to the letter, “Under Prop 306 in 2018, Arizona voters required new rules of the Commission to be subject to the statutory rule-making requirements under the Administrative Procedures Act.”
The letter also explains that “had the Commission followed the Administrative Procedures Act as voters mandated under Prop 306, the Arizona Green Party would have had the opportunity to protest the unreasonableness of a rule that effectively precludes their participating based on party registration numbers.”
Quintana posted a note of gratitude to Hoffman on his X account, writing, “A big THANK YOU to Republican Senator Jake Hoffman for standing up for democracy by challenging Az Citizens Clean Elections Commission for refusing to invite the Green Party candidate (me) to the televised debate between candidates Kari Lake and Ruben Gallego October 9.”
A big THANK YOU to Republican Senator Jake Hoffman for standing up for democracy by challenging Az Citizens Clean Elections Commission for refusing to invite the Green Party candidate (me) to the televised debate between candidates Kari Lake and Ruben Gallego October 9.
— Eduardo Quintana for U.S. Senate 🌻 (@Quintana4Senate) September 10, 2024
The Green Party candidate also appealed to the Arizona Attorney General to intervene, adding, “Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission is discriminating against the Green Party in their televised debates. We think this is illegal. Let’s see what the attorney general has to say about this.”
Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission is discriminating against the Green Party in their televised debates. We think this is illegal. Let's see what the attorney general has to say about this.
— Eduardo Quintana for U.S. Senate 🌻 (@Quintana4Senate) September 10, 2024
Last month, Kari Lake contacted the Commission to ask for Quintana’s inclusion in the October Debate. She stated that “Clean Elections said they will approach Ruben Gallego & see if he agrees to have him on the debate stage.”
Our campaign has contacted @AZCCEC & asked that @Quintana4Senate be included on the debate stage.
Eduardo will be on the ballot in November, & I believe we need to ensure that every candidate & every voter is heard & respected.
As of last week, however, it does not appear that Gallego had responded to Quintana’s and Lake’s appeals – or at least not in any positive manner.
I’m no fan of @KariLake, I’ll assure you. I think her particular brand of Trumpism is dangerous and bad for Arizona.
That said, the fact that she, of all people, has stood up for our democratic right to be included in the @AZCCEC debates and @RubenGallego has not speaks volumes. https://t.co/DSRbg9HFkN
— Eduardo Quintana for U.S. Senate 🌻 (@Quintana4Senate) September 4, 2024
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
The Citizens Clean Elections Commission’s U.S. Senate debate on October 9th is currently slated to include Republican Kari Lake and Democrat Ruben Gallego, excluding Green Party candidate Eduardo Quintana due to new requirements brought about this year. But now, Lake has intervened in support of Quintana, and it remains to be seen if Gallego will follow suit.
On August 23rd, Quintana made a public appeal via a post to X, that as a ballot qualified candidate he should be included in the debate and criticized the Commission writing “if you are truly ‘non-partisan’ organization, you have a duty to the voters to include every qualified candidate!”
I am a ballot qualified candidate for the U.S. Senate race here in #Arizona. I have every right to be on the debate stage with @KariLake and @RubenGallego.@AZCCEC, if you are truly “non-partisan” organization, you have a duty to the voters to include every qualified candidate! https://t.co/KZHHH2bNpr
— Eduardo Quintana for U.S. Senate 🌻 (@Quintana4Senate) August 23, 2024
In a statement released Wednesday, Kari Lake agreed.
According to a press release from the Lake campaign, “On Wednesday, the Lake Campaign contacted the Citizens Clean Elections Commission and agreed to them extending an invitation to every candidate on the ballot, which would include Arizona’s Green Party candidate, Eduardo Quintana. However, Clean Elections said that Gallego would first have to agree to including Quintana in the debate as well. Notably, Quintana has made several pleas for both campaigns to ‘stand up for the right of voters to hear from all candidates running’ and advocate for his inclusion in the debate.”
In a statement Lake said, “The Green Party’s nominee for U.S. Senate Eduardo Quintana will be on the ballot in November, and I believe we need to ensure that every candidate and every voter is heard and respected.
I urge Ruben to accept the proposal for Eduardo to be included in our debate. You cannot claim to be a ‘defender of democracy’ when you refuse access to third-party candidates.”
As reported by KJZZ, Chris Kline, president and CEO of the Arizona Media Association, explained that in order to be eligible for a general election debate, each candidate must have at least 1% of the total ballots cast in all primaries for the office. For the statewide U.S. Senate Election, that works out to 12,400 votes, nearly forty-four times the 282 write-in votes Quintana received in the primary.
Kline responded to the outlet that it is unclear if the Green Party candidate will be able to join the debate. “That is something we are navigating right now,” Kline said. He clarified, “We are reaching out to the Gallego campaign and trying to navigate where they are,” indicating that the ball is very much in the Democrat’s court as of this report.
Quintana followed with another post Wednesday evening calling out Gallego, “So, here’s the main issue I have with this; Why does @RubenGallego have to consent to my inclusion in the debate stage? I’m a qualified candidate that will be on the ballot, same as Gallego and Lake. I have every right to be there and for voters to hear me debate.” He added, “The @AZCCEC is supposed to be non-partisan, yet they’re deliberately blocking myself and other Green Party candidates like Athena Eastwood in CD6 from participating in their debates. It is wrong. It is voter suppression. It is an affront to democracy itself.”
Speaking to KTAR’s Mike Broomhead Thursday, Lake told the host, “I’m calling for everybody who’s on the ballot to be in there. Apparently, they did not invite the Green Party candidate. I think that’s not cool.” She added, “I would be calling for all of the candidates that are on the ballot for the U.S. Senate race to be present and able to make their case at this debate.”
In a post to X, Quintana lauded Lake for her efforts writing, “I thank @KariLake for advocating for our campaign’s inclusion in the upcoming @AZCCEC sponsored Senate debate. Kari and I have several important disagreements on policy, that’s no secret. But I applaud her for stepping up and demanding that all candidates be allowed to debate.”
Lake took the opportunity to fire a scathing shot at both Vice President Kamala Harris and Gallego in a follow-up comment noting, “Quintana4Senate got 282 more votes than @KamalaHarris. Don’t tell me he should not be on that stage, @RubenGallego”
Governor Katie Hobbs appointed a new member to the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission: Christina Estes-Werther, formerly the deputy general counsel for former Governor Jan Brewer and state elections director for former Secretary of State Ken Bennett.
In a press release last Friday, the governor explained that she selected Estes-Werther for her extensive knowledge of Arizona election law and administration.
“With her years of practical experience in elections at the state, county, and local level, I am confident that she will bring valuable insight to the Commission as it continues its important work during the 2024 election year.”
Estes-Werther most recently served as one of 18 members of Hobbs’ Bipartisan Elections Task Force, established at the beginning of last year via executive order. Estes-Werther is a partner at the Pierce Coleman law firm; she often serves as counsel for local governments in election-related lawsuits.
That task force earned the ire of some Republican lawmakers, who claimed it was the governor’s way of circumventing transparency in modifying election law and procedures. The task force issued a 69-page report last November with proposals to improve elections administration ahead of the 2024 election.
Hobbs tapped into $2.3 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to carry out some of the proposed changes issued by the task force. The reliance on federal funding ensured the governor had more flexibility in working around the legislature to seek out her desired reforms.
A year before being named to Hobbs’ task force, in 2022, Estes-Werther served as the privately retained counsel for Santa Cruz County in its lawsuit against an election integrity organization led by Tucsonan John Brakey, AUDIT USA, for submitting a public records request seeking the 2022 primary election’s cast vote records.
The county had sued AUDIT USA after denying the request, in an attempt to squelch further efforts by the organization to obtain the records.
In court proceedings, Estes-Werther had argued on behalf of the county that government officials had the right to sue over fears that the independent auditors’ continued public records attempts would eventually result in a lawsuit against the county.
Estes-Werther characterized AUDIT USA’s attempts at obtaining transparency as putting “a target on [the county’s] back.” A Pima County judge tossed the county’s lawsuit, declaring that Brakey and AUDIT USA had the right to challenge the denial of their public records request.
The judge, Casey McGinley, expressed concern that the county was attempting to set precedent for lawfare against private citizens seeking transparency from their government, per audio recordings obtained by Tucson Sentinel.
“What’s to stop a county from deciding that they’re going to sue a private entity, whether it’s a person or group of people, for fear that one day that person might seek a public records request that they don’t want to provide?” asked McGinley. “I think we can all imagine very nefarious scenarios that could result if a county or other government official could file a lawsuit seeking declaratory relief in response to a public records request.”
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One of Arizona’s statewide Republicans is making a critical appointment to a commission.
Last week, State Treasurer Kimberly Yee announced that she had made her inaugural appointment to the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission. Yee’s selection was Linda Gray, a former state senator. This selection would replace Commissioner Amy Chan.
As the highest-ranking Republican elected official in Arizona, I am proud to appoint former Arizona State Senator Linda Gray to the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission.
— Arizona Treasurer Kimberly Yee (@AZTreasurerYee) December 20, 2023
In a statement that accompanied her press release, Yee said, “I am proud to appoint the Honorable Linda Gray to the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission. Former Senator Gray knows the Clean Elections laws well and will serve with integrity to promote public confidence in the Arizona political process.”
The Republican treasurer added, “Today, I informed Governor Hobbs that with my appointments, and her two Democrat appointments, we can ensure there is a collaborative effort to support the non-partisan mission of the Clean Elections Commission. As the 2024 election cycle approaches, it is imperative that this Commission is fully and lawfully appointed.”
Earlier that day, Yee sent a letter to Hobbs, detailing her proposition to appoint three out of the five members – two Republicans and one Independent – to serve on the Commission. Yee justified her plans from A.R.S. § 16-955(D), which, as the Treasurer wrote in her communication, “requires the political parties to alternate in making these appointment selections.” Treasurer Yee asserted that since Hobbs had “made the most recent appointment in 2017 during (her) tenure as the Senate Minority Leader,” (she is) now entitled to appoint three out of the next five selections as the highest-ranking Republican elected official in Arizona.”
Treasurer Yee alerted the governor that “the highest-ranking Democrat elected official” would “have three selections in the next five-year cycle that begins in 2029.”
According to the Citizens Clean Elections Act, each member of the Commission is limited to one five-year term. Yee highlighted that this term for the current commissioners has expired, “leaving all five appointed positions de facto vacant.”
Yee also proposed that both she and Hobbs “independently appoint all of our respective selections before the February 1, 2024, deadline rather than going back and forth.”
The governor does not appear to have made any comments about the process of appointing members to the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission, nor about Yee’s proposals. Yee offered to facilitate a meeting between the two if Hobbs wished “to discuss this matter further.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
