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2020 Primary Election

Final results show change in District 2 in 2020 Mesa elections

Mayor, other councilmembers remain in power

Posted 8/12/20

Final primary election results in the Mesa mayoral and City Council races have largely stayed the same, as officials numbers were announced nearly one week after the election.

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2020 Primary Election

Final results show change in District 2 in 2020 Mesa elections

Mayor, other councilmembers remain in power

Posted

Final primary election results in the Mesa mayoral and City Council races have largely stayed the same, as officials numbers were announced nearly one week after the election.

The final results from the Aug. 4 primary election show incumbents Mayor John Giles and District 1 councilmember Mark Freeman with commanding leads while Julie Spilsbury leads District 2 incumbent Jeremy Whittaker by almost an 11-point margin. District 3 councilmember Francisco Heredia ran unopposed.

Senior Public Information and Communications Specialist Kevin Christopher communicated City Clerk DeeAnn Mickelsen’s thoughts through an emailed response to the Independent. According to that response, Ms. Mickelsen said the City Council will aim to canvass the votes at its Aug. 24 meeting.

When a state or county canvasses an election, it means the municipality officially certifies the results. The purpose of this practice is “to account for every ballot case and to ensure that each valid vote is included in the official results,” according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s website.

To reach this goal, county officials will confirm every valid ballot cast and counted, enabling election officials to resolve any errors to better ensure accuracy, according to the EAC’s website.

Until that time, election results provided on both the City of Mesa’s website and the county’s election department’s website will remain unofficial.

Final vote tallies, which the county provided show:

•Incumbent John Giles, with 60,473 votes cast, ahead of Verl Farnsworth, with 30,452 votes cast, in the mayoral race.

•Incumbent Mark Freeman, with 10,265 votes cast, ahead of Danny Ray, 4,709 votes cast, in the District 1 City Council race.

•Julie Spilsbury, with 8,486 votes cast, ahead of incumbent Jeremy Whittaker, with 6,826 votes cast, in the District 2 City Council race.

•Incumbent Francisco Heredia garnered 10,499 votes cast in his unopposed race in District 3.

If the results hold, the Mesa City Council will lose its member that has fairly consistently voted against Mr. Giles on numerous issues including the ASU at Mesa City Center project.

Candidate comment

Independent Newsmedia reached out to each candidate for comment but Mr. Giles and Mr. Heredia did not respond at the time of publication.

In an Aug. 4 Facebook post, Mr. Giles expressed his gratitude for Mesa voters “who voted to keep our city moving in a positive direction.”

“The current pandemic has tested our resolve, but I remain optimistic about Mesa’s future,” Mr. Giles said in his Aug. 4 Facebook post. “We have several game-changing initiatives moving full steam ahead and a renewed spirit of collaboration.”

Ms. Spilsbury said she is honored the District 2 voters “put their faith and confidence in me.” She said she hopes to bring a “unique perspective to the council” in representing families that juggle careers, families and the pressures of life.

“I had the wonderful opportunity during the campaign to hear from hundreds of Mesa residents, and they want safe neighborhoods, opportunities for their kids to get a good education, and for Mesa to continue to be an affordable place to raise a family,” she said via an email response. “That will be my focus in my first term on council.”

Mr. Freeman expressed his gratitude to District 1 voters and says he will continue to work to lower secondary property tax, keeping utilities functioning and affordable as well as bringing employment and education opportunities to the city while working with the local school districts.

He also committed to supporting Mesa public safety departments as well as other city departments.

“The quality of life we enjoy in our great city is phenomenal,” Mr. Freeman said in an email response. “We are managing our way through a surge in medical concerns, employment, businesses and other family concerns. As a council, we will continue to make the best out of the difficult situations we are facing.

“I will continue to make it a priority to be available and to be an open ear to everyone in District 1 as we move forward.”

In an Aug. 5 Facebook post from his campaign’s page, Mr. Heredia said he’s still not used to seeing his name on the ballot but is honored with the trust District 3 residents place in him to represent them.

“Though my race was uncontested, the responsibility and privilege to represent West Mesa is something I cherish,” he said via his Aug. 5 Facebook post. “We have a lot of work to do to make Mesa a more responsive, equitable, fair and fun place to live.”

Other results

The City of Mesa spans across four different legislative districts, including districts 16, 18, 25 and 26. The majority of the city falls in LD 25 but area east of Power Road and south of McKellips Road sits in LD 16.

Much of the area west of Gilbert Road and south of University Road and Rio Salado Parkway, including downtown Mesa, resides in LD 26 while the area south of Southern Avenue in the southwest corner of city falls in LD 18.

Both state Senate and House races also had partisan primaries on Aug. 4, setting up who would face who in the November general elections.

For the Democrats, Maricopa County reported the following final results:

  • Incumbent Sean Bowie ran unopposed for the State Senate in LD 18 after garnering 29,815 votes cast while incumbents Denise “Mitzi” Epstein (25,531) and Jennifer Jermaine (26,142) will advance in the State House race for LD 18.
  • In LD 25, Paul Weigel ran unopposed for the State Senate, getting 17,502 votes cast. Suzanne Hug also ran unopposed in the State House primaries, garnering 17,519 votes cast.
  • In LD 26, incumbent Juan Mendez (11,485 votes cast) defeated Jana Lynn Granillo (6,354) in the State Senate race. In the State House race. Incumbent Athena Salman (10,989 votes cast) and Melody Hernandez (8,411) advance to November after defeating Debbie Nez-Manuel (7,877) and Patrick Morales (4,847).
  • There were no Democrats running in LD 16.

For the Republicans, the county reported the following unofficial results:

  • In LD 16, Kelly Townsend ran unopposed, garnering 18,949 votes cast in the State Senate race. Jacqueline Parker (11,381 votes cast) and incumbent John Fillmore (9,132) will advance after defeating Forest John Moriarty (7,638) and Liza Godzich (6,260) in the State House race.
  • In LD 18, Suzanne Sharer (20,758) ran unopposed in the State Senate race and Bob Robson (20,846) ran unopposed in the State House race.
  • In LD 25, incumbent Tyler Pace (29,575) ran unopposed in the State Senate race. Incumbents Russell W. “Rusty” Bowers (23,271) and Michelle Udall (16,569) defeated Kathy Pearce (15,358) in the State House race.
  • In LD 26, Jae Chin (7,153) ran unopposed in the State Senate race while Bill Loughrige (6,068) and Seth “Marcus” Sifuentes (4,898) will advance in the State House race.