In Tucsonโs Legislative District 9, a former Democratic lawmaker is attempting to make a comeback, while a former Libertarian is trying to oust one of the districtโs two Democratic representatives in the primary.
Former Democratic state Rep. Victoria Steele, who resigned halfway through her second term at the Capitol for an unsuccessful congressional bid, is seeking a political revival and is facing off against longtime local school board member Jim Love for the districtโs Senate seat, which has been left open as Sen. Steve Farley seeks the partyโs gubernatorial nomination.
Meanwhile, political newcomer JP Martin is seeking to oust one of the districtโs two Democratic representatives in the House, Pamela Powers Hannley and Randy Friese, despite his limited history as a Democrat, having joined the party in 2015.
The district covers northern Tucson, including the Casas Adobes and Catalina Foothills neighborhoods, out to the Sabino Canyon area in the east, Speedway on the south and Interstate 10 on the west.
The Senate race offers a contrast in focus. Love, a respiratory therapist who has served on the Flowing Wells Unified School District Governing Board for 18 years, is an expert in education policy. Steele, who was one of the most outspoken advocates for womenโs rights during her stint at the Capitol, said she would again lead the fight for respect and equality.
Both argue their competitor is hung up on a single issue and doesnโt have broad enough knowledge base to adequately represent the district.
โHe is a one-trick pony,โ Steele said. โHe only has one trick and thatโs education. Whereas I can talk about education, environmental issues, the economy, water, wind and solar, equality, tax reform, closing tax loopholes. I can talk about so many things because Iโve been there and done that. I know these issues, and he doesnโt.โ
Love said thatโs not true and that heโs actively lobbied the Legislature on other issues, including respiratory therapy licensure bill and other health-related issues. He said Steele is hung up on issues like having Arizona ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, which he agrees with, but says isnโt as big a priority as issues like education.
Love said his top priority would be working to end tax cuts and bringing Arizonaโs per-pupil education spending up to the national average.
Steele said among her top priorities would be to get Arizona to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and to work on other equality issues, like repealing the stateโs โno promo homoโ law, which prohibits educators from promoting a homosexual lifestyle or suggesting that some methods of sex are safe methods of homosexual sex.
Love also takes issue with Steeleโs decision to resign from the Legislature, accusing her of using the Legislature as a โstepstoneโ to higher office. He said if he wins the office, heโs in it for the long haul.
But Steele said she left the Legislature because she saw an opportunity to make a difference in Congress, and she has no regrets. She points to a handful of legislative victories that she achieved as a member of the minority, like mental-health funding and a resolution asking Congress to increase staffing at ports of entry.
LD9 leans Democratic, but is one of the stateโs most competitive districts, with about 31 percent registered Republicans and 37 percent Democrats.
Republicans didnโt field a candidate for the state Senate, but are running a โsingle shotโ strategy for the state House, nominating only one candidate for the two seats in hopes of increasing their odds of winning. That means Democrats have to choose wisely in the House race if they want to fend off the Republican in the general election.
Martin, the executive director of Global Chamber Tucson, which helps businesses grow internationally, is aiming his criticism mostly at Powers Hannley, saying the progressive Democrat doesnโt know how to work across the aisle to get wins for the party.
He cited her votes against Gov. Doug Duceyโs budget that increased education funding this year and against a $1 billion bonding plan for Arizonaโs public universities that Ducey proposed last year.
โPam is very ideological โ itโs my way or the highway, line in the sand, youโre either on my team or youโre not. Thereโs no gray in that type of approach, so I think that shows some legislative immaturity,โ he said.
Powers Hannley, who also works as social-media editor of the American Journal of Medicine, said she opposed the budget because it didnโt go far enough and didnโt have a sustainable funding source, and she voted against the bonding package because universities shouldnโt have to go into debt to get funding.
She also opposed Duceyโs Proposition 123, which draws down more money for education from the state land trust, because she said it didnโt go far enough.
And while she wasnโt able to stop those policies from being approved, she said the progressive caucus at the Legislature was able to lead the fight to kill several tax-cut bills by lobbying both Republicans and Democrats. And she noted that sheโs supported many bills with broad bipartisan appeal, including legislation Ducey proposed thatโs aimed at curbing Arizonaโs opioid crisis.
Martin is running as a business-friendly Democrat, who supports some tax cuts and credits, and other government incentives to spur business. He supports Rio Nuevo, for example, while Powers Hannley voted against a bill to extend its life.
Powers Hannley noted that Martin is the only non-incumbent Democrat to be endorsed by the Phoenix Metro Chamber of Commerce, which she said should raise eyebrows among Democratic voters.
โHeโs running to the right of Friese and me. Heโs running on a platform of more tax cuts and more tax credits and helping the malls, she said. โUsually when I talk about the parts of our district that need help, I talk about the trailer parks,โ she said.
Martin said he was surprised at that endorsement, since he was frank about where he disagrees with the chamber โ including its opposition to the minimum-wage hike voters approved in 2016. But he said Tucson needs its representatives to embrace business and development, not try to stifle it.
And he said if he is elected, heโll be willing to play ball with Republicans on issues where they agree, especially economic development, to get concessions on his priorities.
He said Democrats should stop being the party of โnoโ and start being the party of โand.โ
โCould (we say) โandโ instead of โnoโ? Can this become more agreeable to the interest that I represent? And thatโs where the art of politics comes into play. โฆ I think thereโs no compromise in LD9 right now,โ he said.
Friese, an emergency-room surgeon first elected in 2014, said thatโs been one of his strong suits at the Capitol โ watering down bad bills through compromise and dialogue. He pointed to legislation that would have increased the vehicle-license tax for electric vehicles, noting Republicans originally proposed a very steep increase, which he was able to get cut in half.
โThere are very nuanced measures of success. And you can be concrete and say, โMy measure of success are these bills I passed, or helped defeat.โ
โBut what I like to talk about is how Iโve actually helped move Republicans from their original positions and helped make a bill that I didnโt want to vote for into something I could vote for,โ he said.
Friese said in his four years at the Capitol, he has learned to use the rules and procedures to force debate on Democratsโ goals, even when Republicans refuse to hold votes. And he said if heโs re-elected, he will run for House minority leader to help smooth divisions within the caucus and will continue to fight tax cuts and school vouchers.
Martin is a newcomer to the Democratic Party, having re-registered from a Libertarian in 2015. That, he acknowledges, may be a problem for some Democrats, especially in the primary.
Martin said he registered as a Libertarian to support Ron Paul but has since โevolve(d) on issuesโ and realized his values align more closely with Democrats. Heโs served on the board of directors of the Equality Arizona, worked as a lobbyist for the Arizona Human Rights Fund and interned for the Secular Coalition for Arizona.
โIt takes time to do canvases together, for them to hear what my viewpoints are, for them to not just write me off.
โSo thatโs how I win over dyed-in-the-wool-Democrats, itโs by being authentic, even if I disagree, and by proving Iโm capable of the leadership they need to represent them at the Capitol,โ he said.
