By Tara Alatorre | The Foothills Focus
A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled last week that the Town of Carefree violated the state constitution by imposing term limits through a voter passed initiative in 2011.
The lawsuit was brought to a judge in April by Carefree’s Vice Mayor John Crane after town officials informed him they would reject his nominating petitions that would qualify him to run in the upcoming primary election in August. Carefree cited the town’s term limit ordinance as the reason for rejecting his bid for re-election, according to a town press release.
“In April 2018, I was collecting signatures and the Town intended to enforce the ordinance,” Vice Mayor Crane stated in a letter toThe Foothills Focus.“I was confident that I had standing to challenge the ordinance.”
According to Crane, informal discussions with an attorney at the League of Cities and Towns reinforced his opinion that the term limits imposed by the Carefree were unenforceable under state law.
