Challenge to Proposition 200 measure loses 1st round in court

Secretary of State Jan Brewer is not responsible for independently determining the qualifications of petition circulators who gathered signatures for an immigration initiative, a judge ruled Wednesday. Despite the ruling, the future of the initiative that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and proof of immigration status to apply for certain government services remains unclear. Though the measure will appear on the Nov. 2 general election ballot, the Service Employees International Union is still asking Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Mark Armstrong to throw out Proposition 200. The 1.6 million-member union still contends that the proposition was illegally put on the ballot because the description on initiative petitions was inadequate and incorrect. [more ]