Fontes at Chandler breakfast: Better election resources needed

By Jason W. Brooks
Mail | X: @JasonWBrooks2

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes unveiled some needs Jan. 10 that he says are critical to faster election results.

Some of those needs he’s articulated before. Some seem new.

“We need newer technology and more space, among other things, and I know some state legislators are in the room,” Fontes said at the Chandler “Meet the Elected Officials Breakfast” at the Avion Center in Chandler. “We discovered everything channels through one server — and that server (computer) is old enough to vote.”

Fontes was interviewed on-stage by Jennings Imel, the executive director of the Western Region in the Congressional and Public Affairs Division at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Fontes talked about many areas within the Secretary of State’s purview and beyond it.

“We had to bring a 70-year-old out of retirement, because he was the only one who knew how the system worked,” Fontes complained. “And we had to pay him and talk him into working with us in the July primary and the November general election.”

Fontes said going over and over procedures is the part that’s gone well with elections. He said evidence of extensive training and running through various fire-drill scenarios is what got his staff and election centers around the state through numerous Russian-initiated bomb threats on Election Day.

“We really only had a 20-minute delay for voters,” Fontes said. “And that’s because we went over and over all the scenarios we could think of, we rehearsed, we trained, and everyone knew who to call and what to do.”

Fontes also discussed Arizona Business One Stop. That’s on online portal meant to corral all of the steps in starting a business in the state into one step-by-step web process.

“I’d like to see all the other state agencies who are involved in that process, really get into it,” Fontes said. “For example the Corporation Commission’s got some stuff that could go on that website.”

Fontes also touted how much progress his office has made in improving efficiencies in providing various business services. Mentioning Aaron Aylsworth, his director of business services, by name, Fontes said the department has significantly reduced dropped or lost calls at both its Phoenix and Tucson offices.

Fontes touched on other areas of government as well. Knowing water rights and supply reform will likely be a top state legislature topic this year, Fontes urged government and industry leaders to stick to a set of established principles.

“We’ve got to quit simply looking at quarter-to-quarter,” he said. “We’ve got to look much more long-term, at a bigger picture.”

U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton also took questions from Imel, outlining some important expirations, sunsets and other important items Congress must address within the next year or two. Stanton urged those in attendance to not be distracted by Trump or his loyalists’ attempts to start “culture war” fights and to keep fighting for or against important bills discussed in Congress.

More comments from Stanton and others who spoke at the breakfast will be addressed in an upcoming story.

Imel also made a lengthy presentation focused heavily on the increasing inefficiencies in Congress and obstacles to passing any legislation.

We invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this topic. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.

Email Jason W. Brooks at jbrooks@iniusa.org.

Jason W. Brooks
News Editor | Chandler Independent

Jason W. Brooks joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in July 2021 as an associate editor. After a year covering Buckeye, he has covered Chandler since the fall of 2022, in addition to assisting the Daily Independent throughout his time at INI.

Education: University of New Mexico, bachelor of arts in journalism and mass communication, print emphasis, English minor.

Random Fact: He and his siblings witnessed a Space Shuttle launch and landing in the same year in person, on opposite coasts.

Hobbies: Karaoke, bicycling and American Sign Language.

Community: He supports animal shelters.