Todd Clodfelter, who found himself at the center of several political controversies since being elected to the statehouse in 2016, was trailing his Democratic rivals in Legislative District 10 Tuesday night.
At deadline, the Tucson Republican was in third place in the race for the two House seats.
State Rep. Kristen Engel, a University of Arizona law professor and former staff attorney with the Environmental Protection Agency who first ran for office two years ago, had 36 percent of the vote. Domingo DeGrazia, an attorney running for his first term in the House, had roughly 31 percent of the vote. Clodfelter had about 27 percent of the vote.
Clodfelter was mired on the campaign trail by scandals, including complaints about his use of a Confederate flag as his laptop’s desktop image while on the floor of the House and an anonymous website revealing he was a customer of Ashley Madison, a service that caters to extramarital affairs.
The Tucson Republican was dwarfed in terms of fundraising, pulling in $43,586. DeGrazia, a political novice, raised $53,034 for his campaign and Engel brought in $96,931.
Meanwhile, State Senator David Bradley had a significant lead over his Republican opponent, Marilyn Wiles.
At deadline, Wiles was trailing with 41 percent of the vote.
LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT 9
Democrats Randy Friese and Pamela Powers Hannley had an early lead over Republican Ana Henderson in the race for the two House seats in Legislative District 9.
At deadline, Powers Hannley had 37 percent of the vote, Friese had nearly 37 percent and Henderson had 26 percent.
Former State Rep. Victoria Steele will return to the Legislature, beating political newcomer and small business owner, Randy Fleenor, in the Senate race.
At last count, Steele had collected more than 64 percent of the vote.
LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT 14
David Gowan, who was dogged by allegations that he used state vehicles to boost his failed congressional campaign, was leading Democrat Jaime Alvarez in the race for the Senate seat in Legislative District 14.
At deadline, Gowan, the former speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives who ran for Congress in 2016, had 61 percent of the vote. Alvarez had 39 percent.
Gowan raised $92,663 for his campaign, though a majority of fund came from a previous campaign account. He outspent his Democratic rival by two-to-one. Alvarez raised $45,678 for his campaign.
Gowan, a Realtor, faced significant opposition from professional colleagues, business interests and good governance groups in the primary, which launched independent expenditure campaigns against the former speaker.
In the house race, Republicans Rep. Gail Griffin and Becky Nutt led in early results for the two House seats in Legislative District 14, over their Democratic rivals, Bob Karp and Shelley Renne-Leon.
At deadline, Griffin led with 33 percent of the vote and Nutt had 32 percent of the vote. Renne-Leon had 18 percent of the vote on Tuesday night and Kary had 17 percent.
LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT 2
In the legislative district that runs from the Arizona-Mexico to southern Tucson, the race for the two House seats may be too close to call.
Democrats Rosanna Gabaldón and Daniel Hernandez had slight leads over their Republican rivals, Chris Ackerley and Anthony Sizer.
At deadline, Gabaldón and Hernandez both had 29 percent of the vote. Ackerley, who represented legislative district 2 between 2014 and 2016, had 22 percent of the vote. Sizer trailed behind with 21 percent of the vote.
In the Senate race, incumbent Andrea Dalessandro, a Democrat, had a sizable early lead over the Republican rival, Shelley Kais.
Kais, who ran unsuccessfully in the GOP primary for Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District in 2014, was trailing with 42 percent of the vote on Tuesday night.
LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT 11
Republican State Rep. Mark Finchem and his running mate, Brett Roberts, an elected constable in Pinal County, had an sizable lead over their Democratic opponents in the Legislative District 11 House race.
Marcela Quiroz, a teacher from the town off Maricopa, and retired Air Force Colonel Hollace Lyon trailed in early results.
At deadline, Finchem and Roberts had both garnered more than 28 percent of the vote. Lyon had 22 percent of the vote, while Quiroz received 21 percent of the vote.
The race saw a significant influx in cash with Lyon raising $158,786 in bid to turn the district blue.
Finchem raised considerably less in his bid for another term in the House, $86,832, according the Arizona Secretary of State’s office. Roberts raised $49,899 and Quiroz raised just over $2,000.
In the Senate race, Rep. Vince Leach, a Republican, had a sizable early lead over the Democratic rival, Ralph Atchue.
Leach was ahead with 55 percent of the vote Tuesday night.
LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT 3
In Legislative District 3, which encompasses Tucson’s west and southwest sides including University of Arizona and downtown, stretching from Ryan Airfield north to Prince Road at about First Avenue, the two Democratic candidates for the House were elected by a wide margin over Green Party candidate Beryl Baker.
Alma Hernandez and Andres Cano, both political novices, had 46 percent of the vote and 43 percent of the vote, respectively. Baker trailed with 12 percent of the vote.
Current LD3 Representative Sally Gonzales was unopposed in the race for the district’s Senate seat.
