FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 3, 2006

Washington State Grange ready for Feb. 6 top-two primary appeal
For more information, contact Communications Director Dan Hammock, (360) 943-9911

The Washington State Grange returns to court once again to appeal a Federal District Court decision invalidating the top-two qualifying primary enacted by the passage of Initiative 872 in 2004.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments Feb. 6 at 9 a.m. in Seattle.

"We remain confident the Ninth Circuit will see the top-two primary detailed in Initiative 872 is indeed a fair and constitutional primary," said Washington State Grange President Terry Hunt.

Initiative 872 passed in 2004 with 60 percent of the vote. It enacted a top-two style qualifying primary in which the top two vote-getters, regardless of their party designation, move on to the general election ballot. It allowed voters to choose from an entire list of candidates, rather than having to choose a single party's ballot or an independent ballot.

Washington's political parties filed suit soon thereafter. The Grange hired Seattle attorney Thomas Ahearne who, along with attorneys from the State Attorney General's office, argued the parties' attorneys in Federal District Court in Seattle July 13. Two days later, Judge Thomas Zilly declared the top-two primary "will severely burden the First Amendment rights of Washington's political parties by allowing any voter, regardless of their affiliation to a party, to choose a party's nominee."

The Grange and State had argued, and continue to argue, the top-two does not nominate candidates; rather, it is a qualifying primary.

The State and Grange filed an appeal to Zilly's decision just days later, asking the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals for an "expedited review." Briefs were filed during the late fall of 2005, but it wasn't until January 2006 the hearing date was scheduled.

At the Feb. 6 hearing, attorneys for the State and the Grange will have 20 minutes to argue, as will attorneys for the political parties.

The Grange is hoping for a quick, positive decision before the critical elections later this year.

{The Washington State Grange is a 118-year old non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the voting rights of Washington residents. The Grange was responsible for the long-standing blanket primary and is driven by policy to protect the right of Washington voters to vote for the person, not the party.}

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