Arizona – Politics, Economy, Society

Constitutional framework

The constitution of Arizona reflects the ideals of the Progressive movement, which was influential at the time of the constitutional convention in 1910. It provides for maximum citizen participation through initiatives and referenda on legislation and recall of all elected officials, including judges. A reorganization of the state government in 1968 strengthened the power of the governor and streamlined the executive branch. The governor is elected for a four-year term. The secretary of state, who succeeds to the governorship in case of a vacancy, holds the second most highly contested elective office in the state. Other members of the executive branch include the attorney general, the state treasurer, the superintendent of public instruction, the state mine inspector, and the five-member corporation commission, which oversees public service corporations.

The legislature convenes annually and comprises a 60-member House of Representatives and a 30-member Senate; all members serve two-year terms. The massive growth of Phoenix and Tucson, combined with reapportionment, has given urbanized Maricopa and Pima counties some three-fourths of the seats in both chambers.

A constitutional amendment in 1960 restructured the judicial branch into the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, the Superior Courts, and local justice and other courts. Judges of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals are appointed by the governor from nominees chosen by a commission. Other judges are appointed or elected.

The 15 counties, acting as agents of the state, constitute the basic units of local government. State law prescribes the town type of government for settlements of fewer than 3,500 people and the city form for larger communities. Metropolitan centres have considerably more freedom in organization and operation.

Since the 1950s, Arizona has changed from what was traditionally a one-party state dominated by the Democrats to a system in which both major parties participate fully. Political dynamics, however, reflect conflicts between Maricopa county and the rest of the state more than any party differences. Republican strength is centred in the Phoenix area, but the party also receives support from rural, conservative “Pinto” (i.e., “Spotted”) Democrats. Democratic factions continue to receive support in Flagstaff, Tucson, and some mining communities and among traditionally Democratic Mexican Americans and African Americans.

Health and welfare

The Arizona Department of Health Services, together with appointed boards, commissions, and councils, provides aid and inspection services, including a number of public health centres and hospitals. Private medical care in the metropolitan areas is excellent, but residents of rural areas and the reservations tend to receive substandard medical services. Despite its attractiveness to the ill and the aged, Arizona has no more than its per capita share of the nation’s hospitals and nursing homes. The College of Medicine at the University of Arizona and university-affiliated nursing programs work toward expanding the supply of medical personnel.

In 1981 the legislature created the controversial Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System Administration as an alternative to the federal Medicaid program. The system includes an insurance program designed to provide health care for those citizens who are indigent or who cannot otherwise afford adequate medical care. At the same time, it attempts to contain hospital and other medical costs.

Unemployment and poverty rates tend to be high, which is partly attributable to poor economic conditions on Arizona’s extensive Indian reservations and downturns in the agricultural and manufacturing sectors. Reforms applied since 1995 have limited assistance to the needy and have strengthened work requirements for eligibility, in keeping with the state’s historically conservative approach to public welfare. The Department of Economic Security works mainly through county agencies with a variety of programs for children, the aged, and people with disabilities.

Education

Public education has struggled to meet the rapid increase in students accompanying the population boom and to cope with the overall lack of financial support from state government, which, in the late 20th century, was among those that spent the least per capita on public education. Children must attend school between the ages of 8 and 16 or until graduation from the eighth grade. This law is irregularly enforced, however, and the state’s dropout rate has been among the highest in the country. Elementary, secondary, and consolidated districts operate with the assistance of county and state superintendents and an appointed state Board of Education.

Higher education in Arizona, as in most western states, is dominated by large public universities. The Arizona Board of Regents assumes responsibility for the University of Arizona (founded 1885) in Tucson, Arizona State University (1885) in Tempe, and Northern Arizona University (1899) in Flagstaff. The state community college system encompasses dozens of campuses, branch centres, and skill centres across the state. Arizona has few private colleges.