Arizona Supreme Court rejects challenge to Bobbi Buchli’s Gilbert council ballot petitions
Courtesy Town of Gilbert
Gilbert Town Councilmember Bobbi Buchli can stay on the 2026 ballot after the Arizona Supreme Court ruled her petitions were in substantial compliance with the law.
The Arizona Supreme Court has rejected a legal challenge seeking to remove Bobbi Buchli from the 2026 Gilbert Town Council primary election ballot, affirming a lower court ruling that found her nomination petitions substantially complied with Arizona law.
In a decision order filed May 4, the court ruled that challenger Maureen Hoppe, a Gilbert resident, failed to show that wording issues in Buchli’s petition captions were serious enough to invalidate the signatures she collected.
The case centered on two alleged flaws in the wording of Buchli’s nomination petitions. One version of the petitions described the political division as “LD 14 Town of Gilbert,” while another referred to the election simply as the “2026 election” rather than specifically identifying it as a primary election.
Hoppe argued the reference to Legislative District 14 could confuse voters who live in the legislative district but outside Gilbert town limits into believing they were eligible to sign the petitions. She also argued that failing to specifically use the word “primary” could mislead voters about what election the signatures supported.
The court rejected both arguments.
The justices said Hoppe did not identify any signatures from voters outside Gilbert and therefore failed to demonstrate the wording affected the validity of the petition results. The ruling also noted any ambiguity was clarified because the petitions clearly identified the office being sought as “Gilbert Town Council.”
On the second issue, the court found there was no clear legislative requirement mandating that petitions specifically use the words “primary” or “general” in that blank on the form. The court also pointed out the petitions correctly listed the date of the primary election, which it said would prevent confusion for voters reading the full caption.
The ruling emphasized Arizona courts’ longstanding standard of “substantial compliance” in election cases, stating candidates should not be removed from the ballot for “mere technical departures from the form.”
In a statement to the Gilbert Independent following the ruling, Buchli said she was pleased with the appellate court’s decision and said her campaign worked “carefully, responsibly, and in good faith to comply with all election requirements.”
She also thanked volunteers and supporters who participated in the petition process and said election challenges, while difficult, are part of the democratic process.
“My focus remains where it has always been — serving the residents of Gilbert and continuing conversations about the future of our community,” Buchli said, citing issues including public safety, responsible growth, water sustainability, economic development and quality of life.
Buchli said she looks forward to continuing “a positive and issues-focused campaign” in the coming months.
The decision affirmed the Maricopa County Superior Court’s earlier ruling in Buchli’s favor and ordered the mandate to issue immediately.
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Meet Tom Tom Blodgett joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2022, when the company acquired Community Impact Newspaper's Phoenix-area properties. Raised in Arizona, he has spent more than 35 years in journalism in the state.
Community: He has served as an instructional professional in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication since 2005, and is editorial adviser to The State Press, the university's independent student media outlet. He also is director of operations for an 18U girls fastpitch softball team from Gilbert.
Education: Arizona State University with a BS in Journalism.
Random Fact: He lived in Belgium during his freshman year of high school.
Hobbies: Tweeting enthusiastically about ASU softball (season-ticket holder) and grumpily about other local sports (pessimistic fan).
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