PHOENIX, August 31 – Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Mark Armstrong ruled that the description of the “Protect Arizona Now” initiative proposition as printed on petition forms was legally adequate. He directed election officials to tally the votes that will be cast on the measure, which will appear on the general election ballot as Prop 200. The plaintiffs in the case, the Service Employees International Union AFL-CIO, said that they will not appeal the ruling.

The initiative requires proof of citizenship to register to vote and verification of citizenship to be eligible for certain non-federally mandated state and local government services. The union had argued that the description was illegal because it omitted important information such as the fact that a state employee who does not enforce the citizenship verification requirement would be guilty of a misdemeanor. Judge Armstrong disagreed, ruling that the union presented no evidence that any petition signers were misled by the description. The union also argued that the description was illegal because it said only first-time voters will have to show identification, whereas in fact all voters will. Judge Armstrong it is “purely speculative” to argue that someone who did sign the petition might not have signed had he or she known that the identification requirement was stricter than the description said.