Today, Tuesday, March 3, 2026, the Arizona Republic published a letter by Richard Grayson, "No Labels or Arizona Independent Party − it’s all branding":
Senate Bill 1609 would require the Arizona Independent Party to revert to its previous name, the No Labels Party — the name under which thousands of Arizonans signed a 2023 petition to establish it. That is the practical effect of this bill.The measure does not remove the party from the ballot. It does not raise signature requirements. It does not prevent anyone from registering with the party or running under its banner. Candidates affiliated with it will still face far lower signature thresholds than candidates who run as true independents and bypass party primaries altogether. An unopposed write-in candidate can still win a party nomination with only a plurality of votes.
As a candidate who ran under the No Labels banner, I can attest that the party's ballot access advantages existed before the name change and will remain after it.
Renaming the party “Independent” did not create independence, and restoring the original name will not diminish it. What changes here is branding — not democracy.
Richard Grayson, Apache Junction
