Voters in Arizona rejected Proposition 136 (61.8% against, 39.2% in favor).

Proposition 136 would allow any entity including a private citizen to bring a constitutional challenge to a proposed ballot initiative before it’s even brought to the ballot. The measure has been legislatively referred to the ballot.

❌ Bad for voters: When politicians fail to act, the citizen’s ballot initiative allows citizens to make progress on the issues they care most about. It’s one of the purest forms of democracy we have. By allowing preemptive constitutional challenges to a proposed ballot initiative, Arizona would open the door for special interest groups, corporations, and the wealthy few to reduce the power of Arizona voters.

You can tell a movement is on the rise when those in power do everything they can to stop it. Following a groundswell of momentum for reform in the Grand Canyon State, lawmakers have passed legislation designed to stop that momentum in its tracks, including Proposition 136.

We endorsed a “No” on Proposition 136, and worked with democracy advocates in the state like Better Ballot AZ and Progress AZ to spread the word.