The panel decision featured an opinion by Judge Kozinski and a dissent by Judge Tallman. Judge Kozinski explained the hybrid system in the panel decision:
In some American cities, council seats are filled at large, with the entire city voting for each seat in the primary and general elections. In other cities, council members are nominated and elected by the residents of particular districts. Tucson splits the difference: Since 1930, the city has used a “hybrid system” that combines ward-based primaries with atlarge general elections. The first step in the hybrid system is a partisan primary. Each ward holds its own primary limited to residents of that ward. The winners of the ward primaries advance to the general election, where they compete against the other candidates nominated from that ward. In the general election, all Tucson residents can vote for one council member from each ward that held a primary during the same election cycle. See Charter ch. XVI, § 9. Thus, a resident of Ward 1 can’t vote in the Ward 2 primary, but can vote for one of the Ward 2 candidates in the general election. The parties agree that, 6 PUBLIC INTEGRITY ALLIANCE V. CITY OF TUCSON once elected, council members represent the entire city, not just the ward from which they were nominated. See City of Tucson v. State, 273 P.3d 624, 631 (Ariz. 2012) (“Tucson council members, although nominated by ward, represent the entire city, just as do council members elected at large in other cities.”); see also Dallas Cty. v. Reese, 421 U.S. 477, 480 (1975) (“[E]lected officials represent all of those who elect them . . . .”); Fortson v. Dorsey, 379 U.S. 433, 438 (1965) (similar). Council seats are filled in staggered elections, with three council members elected every other year. Once elected, a council member serves a four-year term. See Charter ch. XVI, §§ 3–4. The council members from Wards 1, 2 and 4 will be elected in 2015, and the council members from Wards 3, 5 and 6 will be elected in 2017. Because only half of the council seats are up for election in any given year, only half of Tucsonans can vote in a primary in each election cycle. And approximately 83 percent of the electorate that votes for any given council seat in the general election has no say in selecting the nominees competing for that seat.