Sacramento, Calif. — California lawmakers and the state’s chief elections officer announced a new effort on Tuesday to move the state’s 2020 primary up by three months, even giving the governor power to accelerate the timeline in hopes of closely following elections in Iowa and New Hampshire.

“A state as populous and diverse as California should not be an afterthought,” Secretary of State Alex Padilla said in a statement supporting Senate Bill 568.

The bill’s author, Democratic state Sen. Ricardo Lara, plans to bring the proposal to a state Senate committee hearing next week. It is the second bill introduced in the Legislature this year that would move California’s presidential primary from June to the third Tuesday in March.

Lara’s effort would allow the governor to move the state’s primary even earlier if other states charge ahead of California.

“By holding our primary earlier, we will ensure that issues important to Californians are prioritized by presidential candidates from all political parties,” he said.