A bill signed by the Arizona governor that would consolidate elections could impact city and county elections in Mohave County. Gov. Jan Brewer signed into law House bill HB-2826 that would consolidate elections effective in 2014. The goal of the bill was to increase voter turnout and to reduce the cost of an election. Bullhead City will hold elections for four council members with the primary in March 2013 and the runoff election in May 2013. The new council members will serve 31⁄2-year terms with the next primary and general elections for those seats to be held in August and November 2016. After the 2013 election, Bullhead City as well as Kingman and Lake Havasu City will hold elections in the fall along with state and national elections, Bullhead City Clerk Sue Stein said.
In March and May 2011, Mayor Jack Hakim and two city council members were elected, also for 31⁄2-year terms. They will run for re-election in August 2014 with the general election in November 2014. Bullhead City had planned ahead several years ago to switch to holding elections during the fall during even number years, Stein said. In the March 2011 Bullhead City Council election, 2,837 registered voters went to the polls to elect the mayor and two city council members out of 22,484 total voters or a 12 percent turnout.
Hakim and the Bullhead City Council also sent a letter to Brewer opposing HB-2826. One complaint would be that all the candidates from national, state and local elections would be on one ballot creating a longer ballot. That could create “voter fatigue” where voters would lose interest toward the end of the ballot. The new law also takes the control of elections out of the hands of city governments.
Full Article: Mohave Daily News > News > Local > New state law could alter future election dates in city, county.