Constitution of Arizona

The Constitution of Arizona is the main set of rules for how the state is run. It was written in 1910 and became official when Arizona became a state in 1912.

History

In 1910, leaders in Arizona wrote the first version of the constitution. It was sent to the U.S. Congress, which approved it. But President William H. Taft didn’t like a rule that let voters remove judges from their jobs, so he said no. The leaders removed the rule, and Taft approved it. Arizona became the 48th state on February 14, 1912.

Later that year, voters in Arizona added the rule about removing judges back into the constitution, and it has stayed there ever since.

Who Wrote the Constitution?

The people who wrote the Arizona Constitution in 1910 were called delegates. They came from different counties in Arizona, like Maricopa and Pima. Some of these delegates became important leaders. For example, George W. P. Hunt became Arizona’s first governor, and Sidney Osborn became governor later.

How Is It Different from the U.S. Constitution?

The Arizona Constitution is like the U.S. Constitution in some ways. Both have rules for the government with three branches (legislative, executive, and judicial), and both list the rights of the people.

But the Arizona Constitution is much longer because it has more details about what the state government can and cannot do. It also gets updated more often to meet the needs of Arizona’s people.