In November, Arizonans may have the chance to make a potentially world-shattering change in their state’s politics.

A new initiative filed Wednesday proposes eliminating partisan primaries, meaning that candidates from all parties would compete against each other for a spot on the general election ballot, with all voters allowed to vote regardless of affiliation.

And since only the candidates with the most votes advance to the general election, that could mean that all of the candidates end up being Democrats, Republicans, or none of the major parties at all.

The change would eliminate the current system in which one party or the other has an unassailable lead in more than two-thirds of districts, meaning the winner of the primary – often someone who appeals to the more radical elements of his party – is almost certain to win in November.

But the proposal, entitled “Make Elections Fair Again,” would not only affect parliamentary elections. It would also include federal and state offices.

And it would override the current system in Tucson, the only city in the state that has partisan local elections.

Also scheduled for a vote in November is a plan to immediately raise the minimum wage by $2 an hour over the next two years. This increase would be in addition to the annual inflation increases already required.

This could increase the minimum wage to $18 by 2026.

However, it is the way elections are conducted that could reshape Arizona politics for decades to come.

“The Make Elections Fair initiative eliminates discrimination against voters and candidates based on party affiliation,” said Sarah Smallhouse, one of the initiative's major donors. The Tucson native is president of the Thomas R. Brown Foundation, named after her father, who founded the now-defunct Burr-Brown Corp.

This is the core of the current legal situation.

Imagine a district that includes South Tucson and the surrounding areas where Democrats so outnumber Republicans that they have little chance of getting elected.

This means that Democratic candidates only have to focus on issues that matter to Democrats. And no matter who the Democrats nominate in the primaries, they are almost certain to win in November.

In fact, Republicans are so discouraged about their chances in LD 20 that they are not even offering a challenger to incumbent Senator Sally Ann Gonzales. The same is true in the House of Representatives, where Democrats Alma Hernandez and Betty Villegas are running unopposed for the two House seats.

Smallhouse said an open, nonpartisan primary gives all candidates an equal chance.

“This gives voters a free choice,” she said.

This is not just a Democratic proposal. It is also supported by Republican Beau Lane, who unsuccessfully sought to become the Republican nominee for Secretary of State in 2022, losing to Mark Finchem in an all-Republican primary.

But in the general election, Finchem lost to Democrat Adrian Fontes by over 120,000 votes.

Lane said this is representative of what is happening across the state, where candidates are nominated in partisan primaries “where less than 20% of voters participate.” Lane, who describes himself as a “Reagan Republican” and is loyal to his party, said open primaries would give more Republicans a chance to win in the general election because the primaries nominate candidates who have broader appeal.

“I think it's become obvious that … at the state level, our party is fielding candidates who can't win and can't attract enough independent voters to win an election,” he said. “This will certainly mitigate that and allow other candidates to move up.”

However, this is no guarantee that Republicans like Lane will make it to the general election.

The initiative leaves it up to the legislature to decide how many candidates from the primaries will advance to the general election. There could be two Democrats, two Republicans, or even two from smaller parties or independents.

However, the measure states that MPs are free to put up to five candidates in the general election, in which case a “ranked choice” system is required, in which voters indicate their first, second, third and subsequent choices and the ballots are counted one by one until someone receives 50% of the vote.

Voters will not only be given the opportunity to accept or reject this initiative, but also to abandon the idea of ​​open primaries forever.

Republican lawmakers brought up their own constitutional proposal on the November ballot that would guarantee every political party the right to nominate a candidate, ensuring that each party could nominate at least one person for every open position on the general election ballot.

If both measures are passed, the one with the most votes wins.

In addition, a package of measures was introduced late Wednesday that would represent a third attempt by voters to increase the minimum wage.

Before 2006, employers were only required to pay their workers $5.15 per hour, the legal minimum wage. A referendum that same year raised the hourly wage to $6.75, with annual inflation increases.

In 2016, the federal minimum wage rose to $8.05 an hour. Voters again voted to gradually increase it to $12 an hour by 2020, with future increases again to be tied to inflation.

The current hourly wage is $14.35; the legal minimum wage is only $7.25.

A further inflation-adjusted increase of an amount yet to be determined will automatically take effect on 1 January.

The One Fair Wage Act would raise that amount, whatever it is, by one dollar on that date. There would be another increase of one dollar on January 1, 2026, also above the regular rate of inflation.

This could easily increase the minimum wage to $18 at that time.

Of particular concern to restaurant owners is that the initiative removes the ability to pay employees $3 less per hour if their tips meet the minimum tipping threshold. That would mean restaurants would have to cover the full $18, regardless of how much tips employees bring home.

They convinced lawmakers to put a constitutional measure to a vote.

This would not override the proposed minimum wage increases. However, workers whose net earnings, including tips, are $20 per hour could be paid 25 percent less.

Steve Chucri, president and CEO of the Arizona Restaurant Association, is convinced that most waiters would earn the $20 minimum wage with their tips. And with a minimum wage of $18, restaurants would only have to pay $13.50.

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