Opponents of Arizona’s Universal School Choice Law May Have Inflated Petition Numbers, Says Sponsor

People hold up signs during a rally against "critical race theory" (CRT) being taught in schools at the Loudoun County Government center in Leesburg, Virginia, on June 12, 2021. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

A group of residents opposing Arizona’s new universal school choice law failed to gather the required minimum number of voter signatures to bring the legislation to a ballot vote in 2024, according to the law’s primary sponsor.

Arizona State House Majority Leader Ben Toma, a Republican, said an independent review of “every sheet of collected signatures” submitted by Save Our Schools Arizona (SOS Arizona) found the actual number of signatures to be well below the legally required 118,000 to move forward with the referendum proposal.