Two former Republicans are running for the Democratic nomination in Congressional District 1.
The district includes Oro Valley, Marana and parts of 10 other counties in Eastern and Northern Arizona. Incumbent Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick is running for U.S. Senate.
Candidate Tom O’Halleran spent nine years as a Republican in the Arizona legislature before he became and independent and now a Democrat. He touts his experience working on bipartisan issues like passing all-day kindergarten and boosting funding for what was then Child Protective Services.
If elected, O’Halleran said he will work on incentivizing jobs in rural America, improving veterans medical care and addressing tribal unemployment.
Miguel Olivas, who has never held elected office but has run for Congress two other times, said he has gained an extensive knowledge of the federal government from years working as an aide for five Republican federal legislators and as a nonprofit and business consultant helping secure federal funding and legislation.
He emphasized his understanding and work with the federal appropriations process, education policy, trade agreements and agencies like the U.S. Forest Service, compared to O’Halleran’s state-level experience.
“I know which congressman will support something and I know which congressman won’t,” he said.
On healthcare
While expressing general support for the Affordable Care Act, the candidates had differing ideas on how to improve Obama’s trademark healthcare initiative.
Olivas would like to see more federally qualified health centers that receive some federal dollars and serve the uninsured, the underinsured and low income individuals on a sliding fee scale.
O’Halleran said he would support allowing consumers to buy insurance plans across state lines and would push for negotiating for better pharmaceutical prices.
Both candidates said an analysis is needed to look at why insurance companies like Blue Cross Blue Shield and HealthNet are dropping out of Arizona counties.
“I think the alternative that’s workable is to take what we have in place,” O’Halleran said.
On gun control
O’Halleran said he doesn’t support banning high capacity magazines or assault rifles, but said he’s behind expanded background checks and banning gun sales for people who are on the government’s no-fly list.
Olivas said he’s not in favor of expanding gun control laws, saying that the government needs to better enforce the laws it has on the books. He does support bolstering federal and state reporting requirements for mental health providers.
On social issues
One of Olivas’ biggest focuses is the protection of personal freedom when it comes to things like gay and transgender rights, marriage equality and women’s reproductive rights.
“When it comes to civil rights I’m very Libertarian-leaning type of guy,” he said.
He struggled to explain a quote on his 2014 campaign website about the Obama administration being “a monstrosity that encroaches on our personal freedoms,” saying that its actually related to the Bush-era USA Patriot Act that approved an expansion of legal surveillance and investigation techniques.
Olivas’ views stand in contrast to some of O’Halleran’s previous votes on social issues. In 2008, O’Halleran voted in support of a resolution proposing a state constitutional amendment to allow only a union of one man and one woman to be recognized as a marriage and to increase penalties for late-term abortions.
Jacob Becklund, a spokesman for O’Halleran’s campaign, said the candidate supports marriage equality and said his views on the issue “have evolved over time.”
On immigration
Militarization of the border is not the answer to the country’s immigration struggles, Olivas said. Instead, he’s advocating for a secure economic zone where the United States, Mexico and border-region tribal nations would work together on green energy-focused economic development projects.
Both he and O’Halleran support a path to citizenship.
O’Halleran supports the “Gang of 8” proposal that includes a ramp up in border patrol and surveillance technology, e-verify for employers and incorporates versions of the DREAM Act. He also supports the Obama Administration’s deferred actions for immigrants brought to the country as young children and undocumented parents of legal residents.
On the environment
O’Halleran criticized the EPA’s Clean Power Plan for not giving appropriate consideration to the economics of rural Arizona, but emphasized his work on incorporating climate change considerations into Colorado River planning.
Both candidates support a Grand Canyon National Monument proposal.
Both candidates oppose the concept of transferring federal public lands to the state, with Olivas saying the state would simply sell the land to the highest bidder and O’Halleran saying the state already doesn’t take appropriate care of lands that it has.
Both said they would pursue a more equitable settlement with the Hopi and Navajo tribes to help resolve decades-long claims to water in the Little Colorado River basin.
On education
Both Olivas and O’Halleran support more state control over education.
Olivas said he is against federally mandated testing, especially when that’s used to determine teacher pay, and wants to see federal grants better address needs like food insecurities.
O’Halleran said he opposes any federal influence in dictating student curriculum and would advocate for rolling back regulations that come attached to federal education funding.
