Reported on friday to little to no fanfare, but this has national ramifications for the GOP primaries.

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Arizona may kick off primary scramble

Erin McPike reports that the Arizona GOP is expected to pass a resolution this weekend asking the governor to move the state's presidential primary to early February.

The resolution says that Arizona voters "have a distinguished history of representing the best of Republican values" and "deserves to play a meaningful role in the selection of the Republican Party's nominee in 2012." The date change would leapfrog the expected dates of the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary.

According to a party source, the Arizona GOP is acting with full awareness that such a move would push Iowa and New Hampshire to also alter their primaries -- and that the RNC could punish Arizona for violating the calendar set by the national committee.

"I don’t know if the idea is necessarily to go first," the source tells POLITICO.

A call to the New Hampshire secretary of state, who is responsible for ensuring that his state's primary happens at least seven days before any other contest, was not immediately returned.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0111/Arizona_may_kick_off_primary_scramble.html?showall