A primary election is Aug. 2 for candidates in Mesa City Council districts 4, 5 and 6, with terms expiring in January 2027.
Candidates filing for a seat in each district are:
District 4: Jenn Duff (incumbent), Trista Guzman Glover and Nathaniel Ross;
District 5: Alicia Goforth;
District 6: Scott Somers and Darla Trendler.
As the primary election nears, the Independent is conducting Q&As with each council candidate to get their opinion on various topics having to do with the city of Mesa. In this installment are the answers to “Why are you running?”
As the election gets closer, keep an eye on yourvalley.net/mesa-independent and the print edition of the Mesa Independent for more from the Q&A series.
For the following, candidates Trista Guzman Glover and Alicia Goforth didn’t respond to emails.
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Jenn Duff
Jenn Duff, 62, is vice mayor of Mesa and a small business owner. She has lived in Mesa for 62 years.
Why are you running?: It has been an honor to serve you these past four years but I have so much more to get done. I’m running for re-election to continue our work of making Mesa the most livable city in America. With your support I’ll continue leading, bringing quality jobs, encouraging entrepreneurship, creating community spaces all can enjoy and encouraging more housing choices.
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Scott Somers
Scott Somers, 54, is a firefighter, paramedic and professor of practice. He has lived 27 years in Mesa District 6.
Why are you running?: During my time on council, we built the foundation for District 6’s tremendous economic success and community growth. I want to return to serve Mesa to finish what I helped to start and ensure that our city is fiscally responsible, focused on attracting jobs and business investment, and remains a great place to raise a family.
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Darla Trendler
Darla Trendler, 49, is a small business owner. She has lived in Mesa for 22 years.
Why are you running?: I love Mesa and want current and future residents to have the positive experiences my family has had living here for 22 years. I bring to council common sense and real-life experience gained from running several small businesses, raising a family and volunteering in the community. My leadership, relational and communication skills make me a good fit to represent the things Mesa residents care most about.
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Nathaniel Ross
Nathaniel Ross, 21, is a biology graduate student at ASU. He is a lifelong Mesa resident.
Why are you running?: I am a fourth-generation Mesa resident, born and raised in the same part of town my great grandparents once lived. Like many of my neighbors, I have become disillusioned with the state of our government and I want to do something about it. Service has always been a cornerstone of my family and representing District 4 would allow me to serve my community in a new way. More than any other level, local government allows for individual voices to be heard and represented. Representation matters in everything from adding speed bumps near schools to adequately funding public safety. A recurring concern in the conversations I have had with Mesa residents is the lack of responsiveness by the City Council. I am running to change that perception and bring accountability to the office. Although about half of Mesa’s residents are under the age of 35, no one on the council is in that demographic. Our younger residents will face the long-term consequences of our actions today and thus need a seat at the table. Furthermore, innovative thinking and new perspectives will help prevent complacency in our City Council. I hope to be the voice of Mesa’s next generation to ensure a bright future for all.
Richard Dyer Managing Editor | East Valley @RHDyer
Meet Richard Richard Dyer has worked at Independent Newsmedia Inc. USA since 1987, starting his career in Apache Junction as a copy editor and being promoted over the years to work as the editor of the Mesa Independent, news services editor for the East Valley office in Apache Junction, managing editor for the East Valley office, news services editor for the East Valley office and eventually also for the newspapers at INI’s then-Chandler office, managing editor again and as a news editor covering Apache Junction/Gold Canyon and Queen Creek. He helped start the Florence Independent while the news editor covering Apache Junction and Mesa news. In January 2023, he became associate managing editor for the East Valley newspapers and in August 2023 became managing editor for the East Valley newspapers of Chandler/Tempe, Gilbert, Queen Creek, Florence, Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon, while also reporting on Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon.
Community: Since 2009, he has worked as a volunteer to design The Blue Guitar Magazine, Blue Guitar Jr. magazine and Unstrung magazine, which are projects of The Arizona Consortium for the Arts; and since 2014, has been overseeing the art submissions.
Education: University of Arizona with a master of arts in journalism and a bachelor of science in agricultural communication. Also continuing education at Mesa Community College in welding in a metal art sculpture class.
Random fact: Saw his first tornado on May 31, 2010, which was classified as an EF-2, as part of a stormchasing tour group.
Hobbies: He is an artist of welded-steel sculptures, selling his artwork at juried and non-juried art shows.
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