West-side Democrats will choose Saturday between at least seven candidates to replace former state Rep. Andrés Cano.
The approximately 87 precinct committeemen in Legislative District 20 must pick three finalists to send on to the Pima County Board of Supervisors. The board could pick the replacement as soon as Tuesday, July 11, though it has another meeting two weeks later and could wait till then.
Cano, 31, announced his resignation July 4 after 2 1/2 terms in the Legislature, including one session this year as House minority leader. He is moving to Boston to pursue a master’s degree in public administration at Harvard University.
The seven candidates who had declared their interest as of Thursday are:
- Elma Alvarez, an instructional specialist at Miller Elementary School in the Tucson Unified School District who has been an activist on behalf of Democratic candidates across Southern Arizona.
- Wesley Crew, a legislative officer for the U.S. Department of Labor who previously worked for Living United for Change in Arizona, or LUCHA and the Biden presidential campaign.
- Andrew Curley, an assistant professor of geography at the University of Arizona whose research has focused on extractive industries in indigenous nations.
- Lourdes Escalante, a Yaqui tribal member from South Tucson who is the executive director of the Alianza Indigena Sin Fronteras.
- Sami Hamed, a two-time local candidate and Democratic Party activist who is a former staffer to Rep. Raul Grijalva.
- Akanni Oyegbola, a former member of the South Tucson City Council and acting mayor of that city, as well as former chairman of the Legislative District 21 Democrats.
- Betty Villegas, the former director of Pima County’s housing department, current director of housing and community development in South Tucson.
After the death of Pima County Supervisor Richard Elias in 2020, Villegas served as his temporary replacement, vowing before she was chosen that she would not run for the seat in the next election.
This time, though, she said she is planning to run for election if she is selected to replace Cano.
These seven may not end up being the only candidates, said Leslie Stalc, who is Democratic Party chair for that district. Nominations can also be made from the floor.
Once the final three are chosen, their names are passed on to the Pima County Board of Supervisors for consideration.
LD 20 is part of four different supervisors’ districts. Most of the residents are represented by District 5 supervisor Adelita Grijalva and District 3 supervisor Sharon Bronson. But a few precincts are also in District 1, served by supervisor Rex Scott, and District 2, represented by supervisor Matt Heinz.
Wadsack recall update
The effort to recall state Sen. Justine Wadsack has about two months to go, but it’s unclear how far the recall organizers have proceeded.
They need to collect 30,981 valid signatures by Sept. 5 in order to force a recall election of Wadsack, the Republican who represents Legislative District 17.
Rolande Baker, who is leading the effort, said she doesn’t know how many signatures have been collected. They are gradually printing and handing out more petitions, with at least 15,000 sheets handed out so far. Each sheet can contain up to 10 signatures.
While they don’t know how close they are to the goal, it’s clear they’re getting a rise out of Wadsack.
The senator said on Twitter July 4: “The woman who filed the Recall is ‘Rolande Baker’, a registered Arizona Communist (for real) who spent the night is (sic) Federal prison in Nov 2022 for storming the U.S. Supreme Court over Abortion. She hates America.”
The truth is, there is no way to be a registered Communist in Arizona, as it is not an official party in the state. In reality, Baker is a registered Democrat, a registration Baker said she has held since 1972.
She was arrested at the U.S. Supreme Court in November, but not after “storming” the court. She and two others stood up in succession and read short statements protesting the overturning of Roe vs. Wade. She spent the night in a D.C. jail.
Despite the recall effort, Wadsack is persisting with the brash style that brought her to the GOP's forefront in her first term as senator this year. She and Rep. Rachel Jones, also from LD 17, recently posed for a photo in front of the old state Capitol, each holding a rifle pointed downward.
In addition to the similar guns, the two were wearing matching high heels. In social-media posts made in late June and early July, they described themselves as 2nd Amendment supporters and appealed for donations.
Dem, Republican challenge for LD 17 seat
Whether Wadsack faces a recall or not, she has already got a Democratic challenger in the 2024 election that the party is excited about.
Amy Fitch announced last month she will challenge for the seat in the district that narrowly favors Republicans. Fitch is a longtime advocate for abortion rights and co-founder of Arizonans for Reproductive Freedom as well as the Tucson Women’s March.
In 2021, the state redistricting commission drew Legislative District 17 around Tucson, from the northwest side, across the Santa Catalinas, down over the Tanque Verde Valley and down to Vail. The idea was to create a district that favors Republicans.
In 2022, Wadsack defeated incumbent Sen. Vince Leach for the Republican nomination. Leach has filed paperwork to challenge Wadsack in next year’s GOP primary.
Familiar challenger for Scott
The Republican who narrowly lost the race for Pima County supervisor to Democrat Rex Scott in 2020 is planning to challenge Scott next year.
Steve Spain has announced his plans to pursue the GOP nomination in Pima County’s District 1, which covers the northwest side, some of Marana, and the Catalina Foothills.
In 2020, Scott beat Spain by just 730 votes, becoming the first Democrat to represent the district in decades. Redistricting has occurred since then, and the district is more Democratic than it was then, with a narrow advantage for Dems instead of Republicans.
