City of Tempe Special Election March 8 2022
There are six council members. Half stand for election every two years. Municipal government is supposedly non-partisan. The party affiliations of the 3 members who are not standing for elections are:
| Doreen Garlid | DEM |
| Randy Keating | DEM |
| Joel Navarro | DEM |
Mayor Corey Woods is also a DEM.
The party affiliations of the seven candidates for city council are:
| Jennifer Adams | DEM |
| Arlene Chin | DEM |
| Casey Clowes | DEM |
| Berdetta Hodge | DEM |
| Gina Kash | REP |
| Harper Lines | DEM |
| John Skelton | IND |
As fast as Ms Kash puts up her signs, they are torn down. I participated in organizing a meeting to introduce her to South Tempe residents, using eventbrite.com. We offered 40 free tickets. Within minutes of posting the ad, someone claimed all 40 tickets, causing the event to disappear. Can we guess that Ms Kash threatens the city government in ways that none of the other candidates do?
This is an all-mail-in election, the type our Recorder, Stephen Richer, calls ‘boring.’ Since Feb 9, two drop box locations have been available: one in Tempe City Hall, available during office hours, and one at 510 S Third Ave, outside MCTEC, available 24/7 and watched only by a camera. I reported this in an earlier version of the blog: ‘A neighbor who has not yet voted reported receiving a text notification from the county saying that her ballot had been received and counted.’ I now believe there is a benign explanation for that. You can sign up for text notifications here: textsignup.maricopa.vote
The ballot is simple, with seven names. Ballots like this can be read in their envelopes with a strong flashlight. If you vote only for Ms Kash, as I did, it is evident without opening the ballot. Perhaps this makes it a ‘transparent’ election?
Here is a discussion of tactical voting, called ‘single-shot’ in this case. If your concern is that someone might steam open the envelope and add two votes, use the write-in lines to fill in two more bubbles.
Here is the ballot. Other precincts will have a different ordering of names, but the precinct code, which gives the order, is printed on the outside of the envelope. Please cast your vote at the last minute. If you bring it to Tempe History Museum already sealed in its envelope, there should be a minimal line.
Here are links to the candidates’ websites and facebook pages:
There have been three candidate fora, all in zoom format:
January 12, 2022. Two hours. Sponsored by the Tempe Chamber of Commerce and the Arizona Republic.
January 19, 2022. Two hours. Sponsored by the North Tempe Neighborhood Association and moderated by the League of Women Voters.
Feb 2, 2022. 90 minutes. Sponsored by Arizona Forward.
This blog started because the city ignored its own zoning laws to protect a rooming house in an otherwise single family residential neighborhood. It calls itself South Tempe to distinguish it from the increasingly urban and dysfunctional north. Two years ago, when the mayor and the other half of the council stood for election, I couldn’t find anyone to vote for. Bill Baxter voted for Corey Woods in order to vote against Mark Mitchell.
Municipal government is supposed to concern itself with basic services like public safety and zoning. Tempe has its own policies for climate change and homelessness. Here is an example of how they work together.
Toby Duffell has written several articles about our misgovernment and published them on Nextdoor, where he complains of being censored. I reproduce them here, with his permission:
The insurance the city wants to sell us to protect our water lines.
South Tempe Civics blog 
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