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The votes have been cast …
Combs School District bond issue wins big in San Tan Valley, but QCUSD bond rejected in Queen Creek
It was a good day for incumbents on November 8 as nearly all who ran were reelected by voters in Pinal County, according to the unofficial returns released by the county Board of Elections.
The sole exceptions were State Sen. Barbara McGuire and Kearny Mayor Sam Hosler.
McGuire, who has held the state senator position in Legislative District 8 for several terms, was unseated by Frank Pratt, who moves up from LD8 State Representative, by a vote of 20,453 for Pratt to McGuire’s 18,453. McGuire was the only Democrat representing a portion of San Tan Valley in the Arizona State Legislature.
Replacing Pratt as one of the two state representatives in LD8 was David Cook, who topped the field with 20,164 votes. Thomas (TJ) Shope was reelected with 19,196 votes. Carmen Casillas finished third with only 16,876 votes.
In the runoff for Mayor of Kearny, Debra Sommers again topped incumbent Sam Hosler 293 to 281 votes. Both finished in that order after the August 30 Primary, but because Sommers did not receive 50% of the total vote, the top two candidates were put into a runoff.
Neither Kearny mayoral candidate has commented on the outcome pending the official results, which the Pinal County Board of Elections said will be announced on November 28.
Pete Rios defeated Thomas Sorensen by 5,362 to 4,540 votes to win reelection as District 1 County Supervisor and remain the only Democrat on the Pinal County Board of Supervisors. The other candidates, all Republicans, ran unopposed. New to the Board from District 2 is Mike Goodman, who defeated incumbent Cheryl Chase in the August 30 Primary. Reelected incumbents are from District 3 Stephen Miller, District 5 Anthony Smith and District 5 Todd House.
Of the two contested countywide positions, Republican Mark Lamb was elected Sheriff, defeating Democrat Kaye Dickson by 43,684 to 32,210 votes. Republican Douglas Wolf also won reelection as County Assessor, defeating Democrat Jacqueline Minto 43,980 to 29,621 votes.
Unopposed candidates elected are County Attorney Kent Volkmer, Treasurer Michael McCord, Recorder Virginia Ross and School Superintendent Jill Broussard.
Democrat Tom O’Halleran won election to the U.S. Congress in Arizona Congressional District 1, which includes most of Pinal County and runs north to the northeast corner of the state. In the entire district, O’Halleran received 110,894 votes to 93,004 for Republican and former Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu and 12,326 for Green Party Candidate Ray Parrish. However inside Pinal County Babeu received 650 more votes than O’Halleran.
Republican David Farnsworth rolled to an easy victory over Democrat challenger Scott Prior to win reelection as LD16 State Senator on a vote of 38,870 for Farnsworth to 21,462 for Pryor. For LD 16 State Representatives, Republicans Doug Coleman (35,489 votes) and Kelly Townsend (35,565) were reelected over Democrats Sharon Stinard (18,609) and Cara Prior (17,583). Coleman was the bigger vote getter in the Pinal County and San Tan Valley section of the district than Townsend, who dominated the vote on the Maricopa County side of the district.
In the runoff for the fourth council seat in Mammoth, Bart Goff won with 132 votes to Frances Wickham, who withdrew from the race before November 8.
There was jubilation in the J.O. Combs Unified School District as the proposed $38.8 million bond issue rolled to a lopsided victory. But although the vote was 3,614 votes Yes to 2,192 No, Combs Superintendent Gayle Blanchard is holding off making a victory statement until the official tally is announced; perhaps hesitant because a similar bond issue in 2015 appeared to have won by 36 votes only the have the official results that eliminated some twice-counted ballots, resulting in a 16-vote loss.
The Combs bond issue will be used for school and building renovations, including the construction of additional classrooms, technology upgrades, new classroom furniture, and better student transportation. Bigger ticket items include a new maintenance/transportation facility and a 600-seat community auditorium/concert hall adjacent to Combs High School on Germann Road.
But there was no joy in the Queen Creek Unified School District (QCUSD) as its $95 million bond issue suffered a 6,027 NO to 4,435 YES defeat. Voter and taxpayer fatigue may have contributed to the rejection as QCUSD had enacted a 15% override and another bond issue during the past two years.
The bond issue would have been used to build two additional elementary schools and a second high school in the district to accommodate student enrollment currently rising at more than 10% a year, said Crystal Korpan, QCUSD chief financial officer.
No decision has yet been made on whether another attempt to win bond approval will be made next year.
James J. Hodl is a career journalist who has worked for newspapers, magazines and trade journals. A graduate of Southern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism, Hodl began his career as a reporter with the Palatine (IL) Herald and the Morton Grove (IL) Review before becoming editor of the trade publication Appliance Service News. In recent years, Hodl has had articles published in Consumers Digest, Good Housekeeping, Home Remodeling, Kitchens & Baths and Salute; and has contributed to trade publications serving the home furnishings, restaurant and casino markets. A native of Chicago, Hodl relocated to San Tan Valley in 2013.
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