Judges have the power to change our lives for the better or worse. They decide the meaning of laws, how to apply them to real life, and whether a law violates the rules of our constitution or our individual rights. For example, judges can decide:

• How often a person gets to see their kids after divorce
• How long someone is incarcerated from decades to life
• If you can be kicked out of your home
• The outcome of the violation of your rights and personhood, and so much more

In Arizona, our courts are dominated by judges who made careers out of defending corporations or big businesses  and locking people up. Research shows that a judge’s progressional background influences how they interpret law and make decisions. Arizona courts have:

• Put so many people behind bars that Arizona has the 4th largest incarceration rate in the nation
• Made it harder to tax the wealthy and fund education
• Made it difficult for us to protect our civil and human rights Ruled that an employer’s ‘individual liberty’ is more important than the health of a worker and their children