Voters to decide on eight propositions

October 30th, 2008 by Joey Chenoweth
Extended web edition

The Arizona ballot for the election on Nov. 4 will feature eight citizen initiatives, also known as propositions, for voters to choose to pass or reject.

A citizen initiative is a proposal to amend either an existing law or the state constitution. For an initiative aimed at amending a law, a petition signed by at least 10 percent of Arizona’s registered voters must be submitted to the Secretary of State. For an initiative that would amend the state constitution, at least 15 percent of registered voters are required to sign the petition. Votes on initiatives are held every two years, with the options of “Yes” or “No.”

Proposition 102 relates to Arizona’s definition of marriage. The official title of Prop 102 says it “defines that only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state.”

Kelly Molique is the spokeswoman for Prop 102 and for the Web site yesformarriage.com, one of the key supporters of the initiative.

“The language of the proposition is 20 clear words that define marriage as one man and one woman,” Molique said.

Under Arizona state law, same-sex marriage is already prohibited. However, Molique said amending the constitution is still important.

“It gives Arizonans a chance to choose their definition of marriage instead of legislators or judges,” Molique said. “Laws can be changed at any time, so by amending the state constitution, Arizonans get to decide.”
Molique cited California and Connecticut as instances where state laws were overturned in favor of allowing same-sex marriage. However, she said this is not the main motivation for the initiative.

“The reason Prop 102 has gained so much support is because the proposition is very clear and not because of any fear,” Molique said.

Jim Burroway, the campaign chairman for No on Prop 102, said the initiative is being used as a distraction.
“We think it’s unnecessary and divisive,” Burroway said. “We already have a law defining marriage as between one man and one woman, and it’s been ruled on by the Arizona Supreme Court.”

Burroway said the legislators behind the initiative should be held accountable for putting Prop 102 on the ballot.

“I think what’s going on is that Phoenix politicians are shoving more important issues to the side for this one, and that shows their priorities are screwed up,” Burroway said. “We expect them to pay attention to important issues like the economy instead of these insignificant and divisive ones.”

In 2006, Proposition 107, which would have amended the constitution with a same-sex marriage ban, failed to pass. This was the first time in the United States where a same-sex marriage ban failed to pass the initiative process. Burroway said voting should be the final word.

“We need to send a message to our legislators that if we vote no on a proposition, we really do mean no,” Burroway said. “They have to trust the voters. We’re finding people are fed up with having to deal with this proposition again when we already dealt with it two years ago.”

However, Molique said Proposition 102 offers voters a new choice.

“Proposition 102 is different than what we saw in 2006,” Molique said. “We’re only defining marriage. It doesn’t deny benefits and it doesn’t get into any legal issues.”