A challenge to the city’s Nov. 3 election results was dismissed Monday by a Pima County Superior Court judge.
Republican City Council candidates Kelly Lawton and Margaret Burkholder filed the challenge, saying the judge should throw out the Nov. 3 election results and either name them the winners or order a do-over election.
That’s because the two lost in the citywide election but say they would have won had the city used a ward-only election. They said a recent opinion from a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel of judges, which said Tucson’s election system is unconstitutional, means the November election was unfair.
The city argued the election was legal and conducted correctly using city and state laws in place at the time. The Ninth Circuit case is not final and did not come with instructions on how to change the city election system, the city argued.
In his ruling, Superior Court Judge Gus Aragon agreed with the city and said the candidates shouldn’t have waited until after the election was over to file their challenge.
The city plans to file a petition for hearing before the full Ninth Circuit panel instead of a three-judge panel, and has until Friday to make the request.
The winning candidates, Democratic incumbents Paul Cunningham and Shirley Scott, were sworn into office in an inauguration ceremony Monday.
Cunningham said the election results show “we’re doing things right and the best is yet to come.”
