The Hill News

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer said Monday that she will keep her state's primary scheduled for February 28, a violation of RNC rules that could disrupt the Republican primary schedule.

As a result, Arizona will vote seven days before March 6 - "Super Tuesday" - a mutually agreed upon date between the Republican and Democratic National Committees.  States that schedule primaries before March 6 - with the exception of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina, traditional leading primaries - face sanctions at the party conventions, including the loss of delegates.

{mosads}But states like Arizona are calculating that the political clout of an early primary means more in exerting influence than the actual delegates.

"It has always been a priority of mine to ensure that Arizona and its voters play an influential role in the nomination process, and that Southwestern issues are addressed by the candidates in a meaningful fashion. I am confi! dent both goals will be realized, given this primary date and the RNC’s preliminary selection of Arizona for a GOP presidential debate," Brewer said in statement Monday.

Party leaders are concerned that other states looking to have a bigger impact - including Florida and Michigan - might follow suit, leading to chaos as states scramble to react to each subsequent date change. Florida's primary is currently scheduled for January 31, although state Republicans admit that the date is fluid.

Arizona's date also conflicts with the South Carolina primary scheduled for February 28, meaning the Palmetto State will likely have to move its' primary up. South Carolina Republicans are already saying that they plan to do so, although party leaders are hesitant to select an exact day out of fear that other states might again try to leapfrog them. Still, doing so could set off a domino effect, pushing Iowa and New Hampshire primaries into January.

Nevert! heless, many Republicans are happy that Brewer did not push th! e envelo pe further. Originally, the Arizona governor was said to be looking at a January 31 date, but acquiesced when the RNC promised to host a presidential debate in the state.