Arizona conservative groups are pushing for the removal of Republican state Supreme Court Justice John Pelander who supported a ballot initiative that would create an open primary system.
According to the
Arizona Daily Star, Pelander drew the ire of the Williams Tea Party and Legislative District 18 Republican Committee in what could become the first active attempt to deny a new term to a sitting high court judge in Arizona.
The move came after Pelander gave his support to adding Proposition 121 to the November ballot, which would allow all candidates in a primary race to campaign against one another regardless of party affiliation. The top two candidates would then advance to the general election.
Although Arizona GOP Gov. Jan Brewer, who appointed Pelander to the Supreme Court in September 2009, opposes the ballot initiative, she does not support the effort to remove him.
No judge has been denied a new term since 1978 in Arizona and only two judges have been removed from office under the state's retain-or-reject system.
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