When Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey placed a priority on shoring up the state’s rainy day fund in 2019, he could not foresee the economic hurricane the state was headed for in 2020. Now, that fiscal prudence will help Arizona weather the crisis brought on by the COVID-19 virus.

Early the morning of May 7, a Thursday, a motley crew of senior Senate Republicans and their Democratic counterparts, disregarding a chorus of conflicting desires from the membership as a whole, pulled the plug on the 2020 legislative session.

The plan hatched by some of the Legislature’s most vocal conservatives to reopen the state’s economy hinges on a concurrent resolution that would overturn the governor’s emergency declaration.

Some lobbyists and lawmakers have a pitch for legislative leaders dallying over plans to adjourn or resume the session – find a middle ground.

Freshman lawmaker Shawnna Bolick has landed in court for using a P.O. box instead of her address on nominating petitions for her return bid to the state House.

Saying it is ripe for fraud, many Arizona Republican lawmakers oppose the idea of sending mail ballots to all voters during the COVID-19 crisis, but 79% of the GOP caucus opts for the U.S. Postal Service to deliver their vote.

The 2020 primary ballot is set and at least 15 current lawmakers will breeze to re-election with no primary or general election challenger, but some candidates could be in rough waters for not providing a comfortable cushion in case their signatures are challenged.

The worsening COVID-19 pandemic has sidelined the state Legislature’s plans to reconvene on April 13, according to internal emails from top lawmakers shared with the Arizona Capitol Times.

Lawmakers introduced a record 1,731 pieces of legislation this year, from small tweaks to sweeping changes to state statutes.

Initiatives face a strong possibility of not collecting enough signatures to land on the November ballot with the COVID-19 becoming widespread, and the latest projections of cases could mean a shelter-in-place policy is coming.