Paul Cunningham, Tucson City Council, Ward 2
Kelly Lawton.
The Tucson City Council decided Tuesday to seek another hearing in federal appeals court over strikedown of the city's "hybrid" election system.
The all-Democratic council voted 5-0 to ask the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear the case. Democratic council members Paul Cunningham and Shirley Scott abstained, because they are parties to a lawsuit challenging their re-election two weeks ago.
Their challengers, Republican Kelly Lawton in Cunningham's Ward 2 and Republican Margaret Burkholder in Scott's Ward 4, sued last week to overturn the election results or, in the alternative, to seek a special election in the two wards. Both Republicans won more votes than the Democrats in their wards, but lost in the city-wide vote.
The Republicans argued that the election was unconstitutional because the primary was limited to voters within their wards, while the general election was based on city-wide voting for all candidates.
Shirley Scott, Tucson City Council, Ward 4
Margaret Burkholder, Tucson City Council candidate, Ward 4.
The appeals court said the city system is unconstitutional, but the ruling came one week after the election. The court said in a 2-1 decision that the city can hold ward-only balloting in both the primary and general elections, or it can hold city-wide elections in both the primary and general.
The hybrid system violates the 14th Amendment and one-person, one-vote protection, the court said. The city has had the election system since 1929, and voters have turned away several attempts to change it in the City Charter.
Earlier this year, the City Council decided against putting on the ballot a proposal for ward-only elections in both the primary and the general.
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