The Mojave County Board of Supervisors took no action this week in a pending lawsuit by the Arizona Democratic Party. I have tried to exclude from
On Wednesday, attorneys for No Labels and Arizona’s Secretary of State Adrian Fontes filed a motion in the Maricopa Superior Court to dismiss the lawsuit. Also, according to Travis Lingenfelter, chairman of the Mojave County Oversight Board, the Democratic complaint may not be a Mojave County issue.
“Obviously Democrats see no label as a challenge,” Ringenfelter said this week. I don’t think so Mojave County just needs to sit back and see how it plays out Democrats see them as a threat and it can be left to Democrats to explain why can.”
No Labels filed a petition for political party status in Arizona on February 10 and received 41,663 signatures from residents across the state, as opposed to the 34,127 signatures required by law. is. The organization was also certified by her 10 qualified electors throughout Arizona. Fontes certified unlabeled ballots for local, state, and federal elections — the Arizona Democrat challenged in his March 30 lawsuit.
The lawsuit names Fontes, the Washington, DC-based nonprofit No Labels, and the oversight boards of all 15 Arizona counties as defendants. According to the complaint, No Labels has not complied with requirements held for political parties under Arizona law. Democrats say as a 501c4 organization, No Labels is barred from engaging in political campaign activities.
At the time of the complaint, the sources of No Labels’ funding were largely unknown, and as a non-profit organization, No Labels was not required to identify its donors. This is a requirement of other political parties in Arizona.
Democrats also said voters made sure the No Limits petition was put on the election ballot before the petition process was completed. Democrats therefore argue that such verification is false and that the No Labels petition is invalid.
But according to the complaint, the Democratic Party’s success in upcoming Arizona elections could be at stake if a No Labels candidate appears on future ballots.
“Failing to meet the requirements and illegally recognizing No Labels as a political party would require the Democratic Party to devote additional funds and staff time to voter education to accomplish its mission in Arizona.” said the complaint. “Democrats and their voters are directly harmed by No Label’s illegal endorsement because it makes it more difficult to elect Democratic candidates.”
Since then, the No Labels organization has publicly stated that the Democratic Party’s complaints represent an act of voter suppression.
According to the No Labels organization’s website, the new party is preparing to potentially nominate a candidate in the next election, but has yet to commit to doing so.
As of Friday, Maricopa High Court records show that a ruling has yet to be rendered on this week’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
