Idaho Supreme Court Dismisses AG’s Lawsuit Against Prop 1 on Procedural Grounds

The Idaho Supreme Court has issued an opinion that dismisses Attorney General Raul Labrador’s lawsuit against the Prop 1 ballot initiative.

If enacted this November, the Prop 1 initiative would implement a “Top Four” primary process and change the general election process to Ranked-Choice Voting. Labrador, in his lawsuit, said the initiative’s organizers gathered signatures fraudulently and that the initiative violated Idaho’s “one subject” rule for initiatives.

A summary of the opinion states that the lawsuit was dismissed on procedural grounds. Here is the summary, which is from court staff and not direct quotes from the opinion itself:

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“Today the Idaho Supreme Court dismissed the Attorney General’s Petition on procedural
grounds. The Court explained that allegations of fraud in the gathering of signatures in the initiative
process are serious, but they must be adjudicated in the district court in the first instance. Article
V, section 9 of the Idaho Constitution vests the Idaho Supreme Court with limited original
jurisdiction to issue writs of prohibition and mandamus. Those writs are proper only when a state
actor like the Secretary of State has a clear legal duty to act.

While the laws governing initiatives are clear that signatures obtained through fraud are null and void, the Court held that those same statutes do not create a clear legal duty on the part of the Secretary of State to make such a factual determination; that authority rests with the district court.

As for the Attorney General’s assertion that the Initiative violates the Idaho Constitution’s one-subject rule, the Court held that the issue will not be ripe for judicial review, unless and until, Idaho voters approve the Initiative at the general election in November. The Court explained that its decision did not preclude the Attorney General from filing an action with the district court to adjudicate whether signatures on the petition should be declared null and void due to fraud.”

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Idahoans for Open Primaries and Reclaim Idaho celebrated the victory on social media.

IOP posted on X:

‘BIG NEWS: Idaho AG’s lawsuit against Open Primaries Initiative DISMISSED

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“The people of Idaho will now have a chance to vote YES on Prop 1 and give all Idaho voters—including independents—the right to participate in every taxpayer-funded election.’

Labrador’s office had the following response to the ISC opinion:

“Today the Idaho Supreme Court dismissed our petition on procedural grounds and acknowledged that our allegations about the Open Primaries Initiative are ‘serious’ but must be adjudicated in the district court.

We appreciate the Court’s reasoned analysis of the issues at hand. We are now reviewing our options to show that outside interest groups knowingly misled Idaho voters about the petition they were signing and will continue to defend the people’s right to an initiative process free of deception.

We are disappointed that the court did not take up the single subject issue at this time, but are confident that the people of Idaho and the courts will eventually reject this clearly unconstitutional petition.”

What do you think of the ISC’s opinion on Labrador’s lawsuit? Let us know in the comments below.