For people who get in deep in Arizona elections work, a common frustration is that the average voter often doesn’t know what the offices are beyond the federal races at the top of the ballot. This was most recently seen in 2020, when a significant percentage of voters voted for President, the U.S. Senate race and their congressional district, but then did not vote in the races for state representatives and state senators, to say nothing of county and city races.
Most voters know which congressional district (of the 9 total) they are in. They can tell you if they are in Andy Biggs’s, Ruben Gallego’s or David Schweikert’s district, for example. But they often don’t know which state legislative district (of 30 total) they are in or who their state representatives are. The problem here is – it is the state representatives and state senators at the AZ Capitol who have a bigger impact on people’s lives than those making policy in Washington DC. In fact, the closer the office gets to where a voter actually lives, the more influence that elected official has on the voter’s day to day life and the less likely the voter is to know who they are!
On the AZ ballot, the top of the ballot is dedicated to those federal races. In 2024 – that is the President of the United States, U.S. Senate, and US Congressional District.
Just below those federal races are the general statewide races. In 2024 – that is just the individuals running for AZ Corporation Commission (ACC) – these are the people that decide on policy for businesses in Arizona. It is often considered the 3rd arm of the AZ government. Worried about electricity or water prices? The ACC is approving those decisions. Want to open an LLC in Arizona? – that also happens through the ACC.
Next up are the 2 state representatives and state senator for the voter’s AZ legislative district. If you are not sure which of the 30 LDs you are in, you can enter your address here to find out. These are the elected officials at the AZ Capitol who create Arizona’s laws and determine Arizona’s budget.
From there, the county races will be listed. Each county in Arizona has a governing body called the County Board of Supervisors. This group determines county laws, county policy, and as many people learned in 2020, certify county elections. This is one of those offices that is often overlooked by the average voter, but the official has a lot of power with a big impact on day to day life. For example, did you know Maricopa County has a division just to help control mosquitoes and prevent the spread of mosquito-borne illnesses? If a neighbor has a mosquito infested pool, this is where your call needs to go.
You also may see candidates for a county assessor, who deals with property taxes (which all homeowners will be directly affected by); county recorder, who runs elections; county sheriff and county attorney, who enforce the county laws, county treasurer, and county superintendent of schools.
If you live in a city or town, you may also see races for the city or town council and mayor. These are the elected officials who determine city laws and policy. They are often the most useful person to reach out to if you are having a local problem. Because so few of their constituents understand what they do, they are often very responsive and helpful. For example, if there is a potential zoning change about to happen in a neighborhood that the neighbors oppose, their city councilperson is the person to call (if you want to ask them to vote no). Often the city councilperson can help to make sure the zoning change never even makes it onto the city council’s agenda (if enough people call).
Even more locally, each precinct will have to elect a Justice of the Peace and a Constable. The constables serve warrants for arrest and other notices within their precinct. This is a serious and dangerous job – and it is an elected position.
The Justice of the Peace is a judge in a precinct-level court to oversee small claims, evictions, orders of protection, and traffic violations. All a person needs to be to run for the Justice of the Peace office is an AZ citizen living in that precinct – they do not need to be an attorney. This is another very important job, requiring care and expertise, that many voters don’t vote on because they don’t fully understand the role of this elected official in their community.
And then – not even counting all the judges and resolutions on the ballot – there are the school board candidates. School boards determine the education policy and curriculum of the local school district. If you have kids, this is as close to impacting your day to day life as it gets. Even if you don’t have kids, education policies impact all of us – students are the people who will grow up to be the next generation of nurses, physicians, police officers, lawyers, etc. If I am in a car crash, I would definitely like the person working to save my life to have had a strong education and know what they are doing!
If all of this starts to feel overwhelming, we have a shortcut. Join CPIC-NOW in September for a “What’s on My Ballot” forum to review what each of these down-ballot offices are and how you can be an informed and educated voter. More details on our events page.
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