A Senate resolution to appoint Arizona’s first lieutenant governor passed the House Government and Elections Committee with bipartisan support on Wednesday, 10-3. The three to vote against the resolution were Minority Leader Reginald Bolding (D-Laveen) and State Representatives Judy Burges (R-Skull Valley) and Alma Hernandez (D-Tucson).
The resolution, SCR1024, proposed that each gubernatorial nominee would name a lieutenant governor to run on the ticket with them at least 60 days before the general election, serving as a joint candidate. If the lieutenant governor couldn’t serve in the position any longer, then the governor would appoint another individual with majority approval of the state legislature. If brought before and approved by voters this November, the constitutional amendment would go in effect in 2027.
Bolding wanted to raise the total votes needed to approve a replacement lieutenant governor to 60 percent versus a simple majority. The resolution sponsor, State Representative J.D. Mesnard (R-Chandler) responded that the state constitution determines the number of state legislature votes needed to approve an appointment. In final remarks on voting against the resolution, Bolding added that he couldn’t support the resolution because he didn’t believe voters would know what they were voting on if the resolution came before them on the ballot.
Arizona is one of five states without a lieutenant governor: Oregon, Wyoming, New Hampshire, and Maine. If Governor Doug Ducey were unable to fulfill his duties, then Secretary of State Katie Hobbs would be next in line to take over. Hobbs is running for governor this year, contending against fellow Democrats Marco Lopez and Aaron Lieberman, and may face off against Republicans Steve Gaynor, Kari Lake, Karrin Taylor Robson, Matt Salmon, or Scott Neely. The primary election will take place on August 2.
After the secretary of state, the succession for governor would fall on the attorney general, then state treasurer, and finally the superintendent of public instruction.
SCR1024 went hand-in-hand with SB1255, which passed out of the same committee with even more support, 12-1. That time, only Burges voted against the bill. SB1255 would award the lieutenant governor directorship over the Arizona Department of Administration (ADOA), allowing the individual to fill any positions not under the governor’s purview to appoint.
A special thank you to my colleagues on the House Government committee for passing #SB1255 this morning. @JDMesnard and I introduced this bill that would ask voters this November to create a Lieutenant Governor position in Arizona. Appreciate the broad bipartisan support! pic.twitter.com/b7OtgrwGfp
Voters would have the chance in November to approve adding a Lieutenant Governor position to the slate of Arizona’s executive officers if a bill introduced by Sen. J.D. Mesnard is signed into law.
Senate Bill 1255 provides the framework for adding a new state executive officer in the Arizona Constitution so that Arizonans could jointly elect a Lt. Governor with the Governor, just as Americans vote for a slate of President and Vice-President. The bill would also change who takes over if the Office of Governor becomes vacant.
Currently, the Arizona Secretary of State (SOS) ascends to the Governor’s Office in the event of a vacancy due to death, permanent disability, resignation, or removal. This has prompted past concerns with whether a SOS -whose myriad duties include registering trademarks, managing the state archives, and serving as the state’s Chief Election Officer- was suited for the demands of a state governor.
Mesnard (R-LD17) is in his second term as state senator after previously serving eight years in the State House of Representatives. He says that while SOS is an important office, “there is very little about the office that prepares you to be governor,” he told KFYI’s James T. Harris on Monday.
He also noted instances in recent years when the SOS who replaced an outgoing Governor was not of the same party. This can lead to “a pretty radical shift” in policy, Mesnard noted.
Such uncertainty and turmoil would be avoided if each nominee for Governor names a Lt. Governor to run on the ticket together. It would ensure voters get what they ask for when they vote, he added. “There would be a lot more continuity, a lot more consistency,” Mesnard told Harris.
But Mesnard is not interested in simply creating a new state government office.
SB1255 would require the Lt. Governor to serve as the director of the Arizona Department of Administration (ADOA), which is the administrative and business operations hub of state government and its various agencies.
“The Department of Administration is plugged into all the different areas of the executive branch, everything from HR to regulation to payroll,” Mesnard said Monday, making it an ideal “training ground” for someone to ascend to the Governor’s Office.
The bill co-sponsored by Sen. Sean Bowie (D-LD18) cleared the Senate’s Government Committee last week on a bipartisan vote. It received a “proper for consideration” pass from the Senate Rules Committee on Wednesday and is now waiting to be scheduled for a third reading.
In the meantime, Mesnard has introduced a companion Senate Concurrent Resolution (SCR1024) which would put the proposed change to the Arizona Constitution in the hands of voters in November 2022. If approved by voters, the new Lt. Governor position would be included on the November 2026 state election.
