In Tucsonβs Legislative District 9, a former Democratic lawmaker is attempting to make a comeback, while a former Libertarian is trying to oust one of the districtβs 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 districtβs Senate seat, which has been left open as Sen. Steve Farley seeks the partyβs gubernatorial nomination.
Meanwhile, political newcomer JP Martin is seeking to oust one of the districtβs 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 womenβs 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 doesnβt have broad enough knowledge base to adequately represent the district.
βHe is a one-trick pony,β Steele said. βHe only has one trick and thatβs 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 Iβve been there and done that. I know these issues, and he doesnβt.β
Love said thatβs not true and that heβs 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 isnβt as big a priority as issues like education.
Love said his top priority would be working to end tax cuts and bringing Arizonaβs 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 stateβs βno promo homoβ 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 Steeleβs decision to resign from the Legislature, accusing her of using the Legislature as a βstepstoneβ to higher office. He said if he wins the office, heβs 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 stateβs most competitive districts, with about 31 percent registered Republicans and 37 percent Democrats.
Republicans didnβt field a candidate for the state Senate, but are running a βsingle shotβ 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 doesnβt know how to work across the aisle to get wins for the party.
He cited her votes against Gov. Doug Duceyβs budget that increased education funding this year and against a $1 billion bonding plan for Arizonaβs public universities that Ducey proposed last year.
βPam is very ideological β itβs my way or the highway, line in the sand, youβre either on my team or youβre not. Thereβs no gray in that type of approach, so I think that shows some legislative immaturity,β he said.
Powers Hannley, who also works as social-media editor of the American Journal of Medicine, said she opposed the budget because it didnβt go far enough and didnβt have a sustainable funding source, and she voted against the bonding package because universities shouldnβt have to go into debt to get funding.
She also opposed Duceyβs Proposition 123, which draws down more money for education from the state land trust, because she said it didnβt go far enough.
And while she wasnβt 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 sheβs supported many bills with broad bipartisan appeal, including legislation Ducey proposed thatβs aimed at curbing Arizonaβs 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.
βHeβs running to the right of Friese and me. Heβs running on a platform of more tax cuts and more tax credits and helping the malls, she said. βUsually when I talk about the parts of our district that need help, I talk about the trailer parks,β she said.
Martin said he was surprised at that endorsement, since he was frank about where he disagrees with the chamber β 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, heβll 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 βnoβ and start being the party of βand.β
βCould (we say) βandβ instead of βnoβ? Can this become more agreeable to the interest that I represent? And thatβs where the art of politics comes into play. β¦ I think thereβs no compromise in LD9 right now,β he said.
Friese, an emergency-room surgeon first elected in 2014, said thatβs been one of his strong suits at the Capitol β 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.
βThere are very nuanced measures of success. And you can be concrete and say, βMy measure of success are these bills I passed, or helped defeat.β
βBut what I like to talk about is how Iβve actually helped move Republicans from their original positions and helped make a bill that I didnβt want to vote for into something I could vote for,β he said.
Friese said in his four years at the Capitol, he has learned to use the rules and procedures to force debate on Democratsβ goals, even when Republicans refuse to hold votes. And he said if heβs 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 βevolve(d) on issuesβ and realized his values align more closely with Democrats. Heβs 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.
βIt takes time to do canvases together, for them to hear what my viewpoints are, for them to not just write me off.
βSo thatβs how I win over dyed-in-the-wool-Democrats, itβs by being authentic, even if I disagree, and by proving Iβm capable of the leadership they need to represent them at the Capitol,β he said.
