WASHINGTON (CNN) – Republican Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer said Thursday she's looking to move her state's presidential primary up to Jan. 31, ahead of the expected start of the primary season in February.
"Arizona is at the forefront of advancing solutions to national issues such as illegal immigration and border security, Medicaid spending and the fiscal crisis," Brewer told reporters Thursday. "So it only makes sense that our state be positioned to have its voice heard loud and clear when it comes to the presidential nomination process."
As of now, the Arizona primary is set for Feb. 28 with early voting to start Feb. 2, according to a statement released Friday by Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett on his blog.
But Brewer said an early election would put the Grand Canyon state on the political map.
"Moving Arizona's presidential preference election into January would ensure that our citizens are major players in the 2012 campaign," the governor said.
State law gives Brewer the authority to unilaterally shift the election date, but Arizona would lose half its delegates as a penalty, according to Republican National Committee rules.
"That's certainly something the governor is weighing," said Matthew Benson, Brewer's director of communications. "Her priority is to make certain the state and its citizens have as large of an impact as possible on the process."
The voting season will likely kick off in February when Iowa and New Hampshire are expected to hold the first caucus and primary, respectively.
If Arizona were to move its primary to an earlier date, as a few other states are also considering, it could throw the Republican primary schedule into disarray.
On its part, the RNC said it's trying to keep the states on target.
"We are currently working with all states and state parties to abide by the rules of the Republican Party to ensure compliance," said Sean Spicer, communications director for the RNC.
– CNN Senior Political Editor Mark Preston contributed to this report.
From CNN Politics
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Get Palin out there really soon to bash the President so we can bash Her.
Self serving ego politics from Gov. Brewer. I think NH has some automatic law to make thir primary always first. Primaries that early are over emphasized and just so much hype.
The only things Arizona is at the forefront of are bigotry and stupidity. They don't need an early primary, South Carolina is early enough, bigoted enough, and stupid enough.
Brewer is a loser. At least when she's kept busy on these "important" issues, she isn't running the state into the gutter or plunging us back to pre Civil War conditions. She fighting hard to keep her master, Russell Pearce, from being recalled and she needs to find diversions to keep that out of the public eye, too.
Oh, the prune again. And to make Arizona relevant. PPPPLLLLLLEEEEEEAAAAAASSSSSSEEEEEE!!!!! As irrelevant as she can be.
Thank God I'll be leaving this place soon. AZ is not at the forefront of anything except extremisn and stupidity.
Don't have much respect for AZ at the moment. But anyone who throws IA & NH under the bus is on my side. Their time anointing our major party nominees should be over.
Arizona, as the forefront of these issues, offers these suggestions:
illegal immigration – use it as a talking point and do nothing
border security – increase it only when news cameras are rolling
Medicaid spending – eliminate it altogether
fiscal crisis – stop taxing large companies, increase taxes on small companies, and siphon 65% of state funds to the capitol city.
We hope you find these suggestions useful toward reducing the median income, raising unemployment drastically, and lowering the vast poverty rate through ill health and starvation.
You dont have to use prison to get quality medical care, use "Penny Health" if you need affordable health insurance. Yeah i am trying to give a solution here.
I bet those Hispanics who can vote are going to vote for this witch. Gawd, woman stay out of the sun!!!
Oh please, Brewer. Your state's choice will be ANY OLD RETHUG running. Why bother even having a primary. LOL I hope that when that stupid fence is completed on the border, you are somehow on the MEXICAN side. That would truly be justice.
Good! Oh, sorry I was thinking it was for a recall for this idiot governor! I once had a wife who looked , talked and acted the way she does! She is now in a mental hospital I'm sad to say!
Look lady, nobody cares. Just because the date is moved, Arizona will be anymore important than before.