Ariz. says No Labels group must accept all candidates
PHOENIX – Arizona’s top elections official says the No Labels party can’t block candidates from using its ballot line to run for office, boosting opponents’ efforts to force the movement for a third-party presidential ticket to release more information about its anonymous donors.
A senior official for Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, a Democrat, rejected No Labels’ request to exclude two people who have filed paperwork to run for state office without the support of the party’s leadership. One of the two people opposes No Labels and is deliberately trying to force the party to comply with Arizona’s campaign finance laws.
Fontes’ move was a victory for Democrats and other critics of former President Donald Trump who believe a third-party bid has no chance of winning the presidency but could spoil the election in Trump’s favor. No Labels has already qualified for the ballot in 11 states including Arizona, where it has registered 15,000 voters – more than President Joe Biden’s 2020 margin of victory here.
Democrats have long accused the group of unfairly hiding who is funding its work and tried to force No Labels to name its donors. The group says it isn’t required to disclose donors under federal law and withholds information to protect their privacy.
In a letter, Fontes’ office told No Labels that he was obligated to accept statements of interest, the first step toward running for office, from anyone who meets the requirements to run. The letter, obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday, said refusing their paperwork would violate their rights.
“The Arizona Secretary of State disagrees with your assertion that a newly recognized political party can choose to deprive its own voters of their constitutionally protected freedom of association,” State Elections Director Colleen Connor wrote in a Sept. 22 letter.
No Labels promised to sue. It had asked Fontes to reject the two candidacies filed without its approval and argued it doesn’t have to register as a political party under Arizona law or share its financial information because it only wants to compete for federal offices.
Leaders said both Arizona law and the U.S. Constitution allow political parties to opt out of participating in an election.
“Political pressure dictated the writing of this letter, not the law,” No Labels officials Jay Nixon and Benjamin Chavis Jr. said in a statement. Nixon is a former Democratic governor of Missouri and Chavis a former head of the NAACP. “The Secretary of State’s onepage letter is not a serious response to the request by the No Labels Party of Arizona.”
Even if No Labels files and loses a lawsuit, it may not have to disclose its donors in Arizona. A complex set of laws outlines the circumstances which political groups are required to report financial information intended to influence an election.
The No Labels Party of Arizona will register as a party if it raises and spends money, but it does not currently have a bank account, according to a No Labels official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the group’s internal operations.