City of Tucson, a Municipal Corporation, Plaintiff/appellant v. State of Arizona, Defendant/appellee, and Southern…

Summary

The court held that Arizona's constitutional home-rule protection permits Tucson to retain its charter-based method of electing city council members, including partisan ward primaries followed by at-large general elections. The 2009 amendments to A.R.S. § 9-821.01 conflict with Tucson's charter but do not override it because the structure and selection of a charter city's governing officers are matters of local concern. The court vacated the court of appeals' opinion and remanded for summary judgment in favor of Tucson.