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Proof candidates matter — will parties listen?

2022 Election Key Takeaways


In a purple state where fewer than one in three registered voters is a Democrat, voters shrunk typically Republican stronghold counties and gave Democrats their best results in decades.


Governor-elect Katie Hobbs ran a subdued campaign but may have come out on top because she avoided verbally accosting journalists and late-night Twitter fights about election fraud. Hobbs bet instead that voters in search of a leader who emphasized problem-solving would recoil against Lake’s methodologies.

She was right.


Fed up members of the GOP point out that not since the Watergate era has Arizona’s Republican Party seen losses of this magnitude.


While we applaud the wins for Arizona’s democracy, we’re left to wonder — isn’t there a better way to run Arizona elections? Isn’t there a system that denounces the spread of misinformation and deters this type of negative campaign rhetoric?


The results are proof that candidates matter to voters. Will parties listen?


The most recent Secretary of State report finds Republicans remain the largest voter bloc in the state (34.7%) followed closely by independent voter registration (33.9%) while Democratic registration made up 31% of registered voters.


Arizona’s independent voters are increasing in number and impact. They represent a critical determining portion of our electorate that’s saying they prefer democracy over denialism and leadership over partisanship.


Would giving them the ability to vote in our primary elections force candidates to take a fact-based approach and be accountable to a wider base of voters? Their participation may just be the key to unlocking the potential for more Arizonans to be represented come Election Day.


If you were disappointed by the choices on your November ballot, just remember it was our primary election process that yielded such an outcome. It’s time we pay attention to how candidates won in Arizona’s party primaries — most did with support from less than 15% of registered voters.



Versions of election reform gain momentum around the nation. Nevada proves it: The story of 2022 is winning solutions to put voters first Unite America Ranked choice voting (RCV) had its biggest Election Day ever FairVote 2022 Anti-Corruption Campaign Victories Represent Us





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