PHOENIX -- Some former state lawmakers and their allies want voters to revamp a 7-year-old law on how congressional and legislative districts are drawn in hopes of creating some more competition at the general election ballot box. But the head of the Arizona Republican Party said it's simply an effort by a well-heeled Democrat to get more members of that party elected. An initiative drive formally launched Wednesday would revamp the Independent Redistricting Commission which actually draws the lines every decade, adding four new members. That change will ensure there are people from more parts of the state. But the real change would be to require that the commission pay more attention to creating "competitive" districts -- those where the Democratic and Republican candidates have relatively equal chances of getting elected. That was one of the goals of the original measure approved by voters in 2000. The argument was that districts dominated by people registered with one party had their races decided in the primary -- and only by people in that party -- making the general election pretty much irrelevant. But the commissioners concluded the wording of that 2000 measure required them to give greater weight to other factors including making compact districts, respecting communities of interest and following existing city and county boundaries. The result was only a handful of districts that could be considered competitive. Foes sued and the case remains under litigation. This measure would spell out that the next time lines are drawn -- after the 2010 census -- competition would be more important than the other factors. "We have an underlying philosophy, the more competitive the districts, the better the public discourse, the better the lawmaking," said former state Rep. Ken Clark, a Phoenix Democrat who is chairing the effort. Clark's committee needs 230,047 valid signatures by July 3, 2008 to qualify for the general election ballot. Randy Pullen, chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, said he sees something more political behind the new initiative. He pointed out that the 2000 measure was pushed -- and bankrolled -- by Jim Pederson who at the time was chairman of the Arizona Democratic Party. And Pederson, a shopping center developer, acknowledged he is involved in the new effort, though he won't say how much he has pledged to the campaign. "It didn't give him the results he wanted," Pullen said of Pederson. "So now he wants to fiddle with it again." The real intent, said Pullen "is to shift the playing field in favor of the Democrats." Clark, however, said this is a bipartisan effort. In fact, the treasurer of the campaign is Roberta Voss, a former Republican legislator from Prescott. Pullen said the 2006 election proves there is no need for tinkering with the law. That resulted in a state Senate which is 17-13 Republican, with the House divided 33-27 Republican versus Democrat. That comes close to the actual voter registration figures of 39.3 percent Republicans against 33.1 percent Democrat, with the balance in other parties or independents. And four of the state's eight congressional seats are now in Democratic hands. But Clark said the outcome of the 2006 races is not typical. Even if voters approve the change, Pederson acknowledged that many -- if not most -- of the legislative districts will remain dominated by one party.