I hadn't planned on making any endorsements in any of the contested primary races this year, but recent events have led me to reconsider that decision.

First off, I support the candidacies of Janet Napolitano, Terry Goddard and Jim Pederson. All three face token opposition, if any, in their primary contests (and, some would argue, in a couple of their general election contests too). Janet and Terry are running the kinds of campaigns they need to run as incumbents.

I wish to high heaven that Mr. Pederson would start running a more aggressive campaign against Jon Kyl. There are plenty of gold mines in the Senator's voting record to make political hay out of. It's not negative if it's true. Challengers running against incumbents MUST play offense. All of these feel-good commercials about Jim's business success and what he would do if elected don't amount to a hill of beans if the majority of voters aren't convinced why they should not stick with the devil they know. The theme of his campaign should be accountability and the message should be how much of a rubber stamp Jon Kyl has been for George W. Bush's failed policies. The more you highlight the failures of the Bush administration and the Republican Congress, the faster you'll see Kyl's numbers drop. I can't for the life of me figure out why Pederson's camp isn't pointing out the obvious. Iraq is a huge failure, but there's also the economy, gas prices, Social Security privatization (which Kyl still supports), Katrina response and rebuilding, and any number of other dismal failures of Bush domestic and foreign policy that Jon Kyl still believes were successes. It's time for the Pederson camp to knock off Kyl's rose-colored glasses and give him a black eye!

Now for some of the contested primary races:

State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Endorsement: Jason Williams

Though I appreciate Slade Mead's principles and regret that the Republican Party essentially kicked him out for, you know, not hating brown people and poor people and gays enough, I have to go with the teacher on this one. My mom was a member of the local school board for 16 years. She was president of her county school board for a stint during that time and earned a Master School Board Member certification from the state of New Jersey, one of the first to do so. She was also a former teacher B.C. (before children), and I think that's a big part of what made her so successful. So my nod goes to Williams for the Top Teacher spot. Although really, I'd be happy with either instead of Tom Horne, that pompous do-nothing windbag.


State House - LD28
Endorsements: David Bradley and Ted Prezelski

I'll probably only endorse in this district because it's mine.

David Bradley has done an admirable job of representing my interests in the state House. He's low-key and represents his constituents with dignity and honor (which is more than I can say for his House colleague in the district). I especially appreciate his courage and diligence in sponsoring the successful common sense anti-bullying legislation last year. His modesty is as appreciated as his ability to get the job done. Frankly, I don't think David is recognized enough for the work he does at the Legislature.

I only know Ted through his blog, which is a must-read for me. His insight and passion for sound public policy are what make him stand out from the pack. I know that Steve Farley is getting a lot of the buzz, primarily because of his past forays into the public spotlight. But I would prefer to vote for someone who will work quietly behind the scenes to pass good laws (or at least prevent the truly atrocious Republican ones from getting to the Governor's desk). Ted is smart, quick-witted and silver-tongued. What better qualities to look for in a Representative?


State Senate - LD28
Endorsement: Paula Aboud

I was honestly very agnostic about this race for a long time, until Ted Downing started in with his ridiculous excuses about voting against the spousal rape repeal. In their endorsement of Ted, the Tucson Citizen cited his objections to a so-called "technicality" that the legislation did not provide penalties for falsely reporting spousal rape. That would be admirable if it weren't an outright lie. The legislation that Ted voted against did indeed include a class one misdemeanor penalty for falsely reporting sexual assault of a spouse, the same class as for making false statements to law enforcement about any other felony. So is Ted saying that alleged rape victims should be held to higher account? Ted clearly does not understand what happens when allegations of sexual assault are made. Even the not-made-up allegations rarely make it very far. Ted also likes to point out that he co-sponsored the 2004 spousal rape repeal bill. That's great and I do deeply appreciate that. But that bill didn't include any penalties for false reporting that Ted now so self-righteously said he stood for. So why all the sudden concern in 2005 that he never even registered until the final vote was taken, at which point his alleged concerns were already addressed. Did he even read the bill? This may not be enough for others to decide to vote against Ted and for Paula, but when it comes to sexual violence, I am a single-issue voter. Shame on Mr. Downing for manipulating facts and then accusing his opponent of dirty tricks! Paula has acquited herself quite well during her short tenure in the Senate. And why does Ted all of a sudden want to switch bodies? He wasn't term-limited out of his House seat. Could it be that this blowhard knows that he will have more of a chance to hear himself talk in a body half the size?


CD8
Endorsement: Gabrielle Giffords or Jeff Latas
(if the Arizona Human Right Fund could endorse both Bob Walkup and Tom Volgy for Mayor at the same time, I can endorse two candidates for the same office at once too - at least mine are both from the same party!)

Ms. Giffords has been the frontrunner in this race from the day Jim Kolbe announced his retirement, but Jeff Latas was in the race already at that point, ready to take on the 11-term incumbent. Both Giffords and Latas are intelligent, committed and effective communicators of their visions. I was proud to have Gabrielle represent me in the Senate. I've been consistently impressed with Jeff's approach to the issues and his fighting spirit for progressive values. Both candidates have also been running more or less positive campaigns. I've taken issue with Giffords' early supporters pretty much anointing her the next House member from southern Arizona, without even acknowledging that there were other candidates already declared long before she threw her hat in the ring. When I posted one of those early tirades on this-here blog, Gabrielle responded to me personally and I give her a ton of credit for that. Jeff did the same when I was critical of his early messaging. These are two very smart and savvy people and I would be thrilled to pieces if either of them won the nomination.
Honorable mention goes to Francine Schacter. Talk about smart and sassy!
Alex Rodriguez has never impressed me much and Patty Weiss (and her online supporters) always comes off as angry to me. There may be plenty to be angry about, but it doesn't appeal to me as a voter.
Bill Johnson is batshit insane.
And Dwight, darling, you're not even on the ballot. You're not, as far as I can tell, even running a write-in campaign. While your early pursuit of the nomination was admirable, you are not technically a candidate anymore since you didn't submit any nominating petitions. Just want to make sure we're clear.


Though I'm not officially endorsing any Republicans, I will strongly urge my Republican and Independent friends in LD26 to vote for Toni Hellon to retain her Senate seat and for Pete Hershberger and Lisa Lovallo in the House. Toni and Pete have done their best to keep the most extreme elements of their caucus from going over the deep end. Lisa would add another voice of moderation. I know Lisa personally and can think of nobody better prepared to work with colleagues from every end of the political spectrum to get solid policy passed that will not harm families. Seriously, she's a damn sight better than Carol Summers, whose right-wing voting record from the last time she served in the legislature betrays her faux-moderate campaigning this cycle. I only hope that the positive words from this lefty Dem don't hurt Lisa's chances in her majority GOP district (as if anybody actually reads this).


So there you have it. I was going to write a post entitled, "Ted Downing is Full of Shit," but I think this may have been a more diplomatic way to go. Flame on if you want, but I've said my peace and I'm sticking to it. All of it.