“Vote, Vote, Vote!” – Gabby Giffords

Use this page as your guide through the election process. We break down everything that will be on LD 17 voters’ ballots for this General Election season. Be an informed voter and make your voice heard. If you are looking for candidate yard signs, we have them available at our campaign office.

Important Dates

Election Day:
Tuesday, November 3
Polls open 6am – 7pm

Plan Your Vote

Joe Biden and Barack Obama know that voting is not something you start thinking about on November 3rd. The process of determining how to vote starts early. Having a voting plan will ensure that there are no barriers to having your vote counted. Whether you’re voting by mail or voting in person, we put together some of the best ideas for how to prepare to vote. Once you have your plan, share it with your friends and family.

LD 17 “Vote by Mail” Plan (Updated)

  1. DO NOT put your ballot in the mail after 10/27, as it likely won’t be received before November 3. Drop off your ballot at any drop box or vote center. Listed below are some nearby locations. For complete times and locations, go the Elections Department HERE.
  2. If you have a problem with your ballot, contact the Elections Department immediately at (602) 506-1511.

LD 17 “Vote In Person” Plan (Updated)

  1. Know your voter registration status by checking HERE. If there is a problem, contact the Elections Department immediately at (602) 506-1511.
  2. Find where you will vote. Listed below are some nearby locations. For complete times and locations, go the Elections Department HERE. 
  3. Bring proper identification. This fundamental step is often overlooked. Check HERE for accepted forms of ID.
  4. Be prepared to stand in line for a while. Wear comfortable clothing and shoes. Bring water and snacks. Bring a folding chair that can be carried on your back. Wear a mask.
  5. Wear neutral clothing, meaning clothing that is not meant to influence the votes of others. Avoid wearing clothing that supports a particular candidate or social/political movement.
  6. Stay in Line. If you are in line before the polls close, you will be able to vote, regardless of what time it is.
  7. Report voter suppression tactics or civil rights violations to any or all of the following: 
    • Maricopa Elections Department at (602) 506-1511
    • Arizona Secretary of State HERE
    • Arizona Attorney General’s office HERE

Arizona Legislative Candidates

The Arizona State Legislature, which makes laws in Arizona, is a bicameral body made up of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Republicans currently hold a slim majority in both of these chambers. By adding more Democrats to the legislature, legislation that would otherwise never be brought to the floor will have the opportunity to receive a vote.

Jennifer Pawlik, Arizona State House of Representatives, LD 17

Jennifer is a native Arizonan and attended Arizona schools from kindergarten through college. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education from Northern Arizona University, and then earned a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction. She has taught for twenty years, nine of which were in the Chandler Unified School District. Jennifer teaches undergraduate students in the College of Education at Northern Arizona University, Chandler-Gilbert Community College campus.

Learn More

Ajlan “AJ” Kurdoglu, Arizona State Senate, LD 17

Ajlan is a first-generation American. He has an immense love for our country and our state. He cherishes the freedoms, opportunities, and quality of life our great country and Arizona offer. As an Arizonan, he believes every one of us should have access to a great education, to a great health care system, and to thriving communities.

Learn More

Maricopa County Candidates

The Maricopa County Democratic Party (MCDP) maintains an extensive list of candidates running for county-wide offices. Candidate biographic information and links to their respective websites are available as well. This listing includes candidates for Corporation Commission, Supervisor, County Attorney, Sheriff, Superintendent, and more!

See MCDP Candidates

United States Legislative Candidates

The U.S. Legislative Branch (also known as the U.S. Congress) is made up of two chambers: The House of Representatives and the Senate. Congress has 535 voting members: 435 Representatives and 100 Senators. Democrats currently have a majority in the House of Representatives, while Republicans have a majority in the Senate.

All Arizonans vote for the same Senators, but your location in Legislative District 17 determines which Representative will appear on your ballot. LD 17 contains portions of Congressional Districts 5 and 9.

Joan Greene, U.S. House of Representatives, AZ Congressional District 5

Joan Greene has owned and operated a promotional marketing company whose clients have included nonprofits and billion dollar corporations. Joan knows how to work with all kinds of people, and she wants to bring a pragmatic, solutions-oriented leadership approach to Washington D.C.

Learn More

Greg Stanton, U.S. House of Representatives, AZ Congressional District 9

Congressman Greg Stanton has developed a reputation in Congress for working across the aisle and being a tireless advocate for Arizona who knows the issues of his state, especially those of Congressional District 9, inside and out.

Learn More

Mark Kelly, U.S. Senate, AZ

Captain Mark Kelly is a retired U.S. Navy combat pilot, engineer, and NASA astronaut. He lives in Tucson with his wife, former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords.

Learn More

Ballot Measures

Ballot Initiatives are a way for Arizona voters to directly decide on legislation. Like a candidate seeking election, these initiatives must obtain the necessary number of valid signatures before they can be on the ballot. This election, two statewide initiatives met that standard. Additionally, there is one ballot initiative that only applies to voters in Maricopa County.

All statewide measures that qualify for the ballot have an impartial analysis prepared by the Legislature which is included in the voter information packet.

Read Analyses

Proposition 207: Marijuana Legalization

Legalizes, regulates, and taxes marijuana.

  • A “yes” vote supports this ballot initiative to legalize the possession and use of marijuana for persons who are at least 21 years old, enact a tax on marijuana sales, and require the state Department of Health and Human Services to develop rules to regulate marijuana businesses
  • A “no” vote opposes this ballot initiative, thus keeping the recreational possession and use of marijuana illegal under state law in Arizona.

Supports:

Opposes:

Learn More

Proposition 208: Invest In Education

Increases the tax on incomes exceeding $250,000 for teacher salaries and schools.

  • A “yes” vote supports this ballot initiative to:
    • enact a 3.50% income tax, in addition to the existing income tax (4.50% in 2020), on income above $250,000 (single filing) or $500,000 (joint filing) and 
    • distribute the revenue from the 3.50% income tax to teacher and classroom support staff salaries, teacher mentoring and retention programs, career and technical education programs, and the Arizona Teachers Academy.
  • A “no” vote opposes this ballot initiative, thus keeping the highest income tax rate at 4.50% (in 2020) on income above $159,000 (single filing) or $318,000 (joint filing).

Supports:

  • Greg Stanton (D) – U.S. Representative
  • Kathy Hoffman (D) – Superintendent of Public Instruction
  • Jennifer Pawlik (D) – State Representative
  • Arizona AFL-CIO
  • Arizona Center for Economic Progress
  • Arizona Education Association
  • Arizona Interfaith Network
  • Children’s Action Alliance
  • Stand for Children, Inc
  • See more supporters HERE

Opposes:

  • Doug Ducey, Governor of AZ
  • Commercial Real Estate Development Association, Arizona Chapter
Learn More

Proposition 449: Fund Maricopa County Special Heathcare District

Continues to fund the Maricopa County Special Health Care District for another 20 years. This includes a public teaching hospital, the Arizona Burn Center, three behavioral health hospitals, 12 family health centers, the McDowell Healthcare Center, and the Arizona Children’s Center.

Valleywise Health (formerly known as Maricopa Integrated Health System) is Arizona’s only public teaching health system and serves the needs of anyone who comes through its doors. Its mission is to “provide exceptional care, without exception, to every patient, every time.” 

More than 65% of Valleywise patients are uninsured, underinsured, or covered by AHCCCS, Arizona’s Medicaid program, or Federal Emergency Services.  Annually, Valleywise serves nearly 400,000 patients with its staff of nearly 3,700 medical and healthcare professionals.    

  • A “yes” vote will have the effect of continuation of the levy of a secondary property tax for the benefit of the Maricopa County Special Health Care District – which includes the public teaching hospital, the Arizona Burn Center, three behavioral health hospitals and 12 family health centers — for a period not to exceed twenty years, which tax is estimated at $38 per year on a home assessed at $200,000.          
  • A “no” vote will have the effect of not approving the continuation of the levy of a secondary property tax for the benefit of the Maricopa County Special Health Care District, which tax will expire without voter approval before August 2025.

Supports:

  • US Senator Kyrsten Sinema
  • Rep. Ruben Gallego
  • Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone
  • Corey Woods, Mayor of Tempe
  • John Giles, Mayor of Mesa
  • Kate Gallego, Mayor of Phoenix
  • Jason Schecterle, former Phoenix police officer who suffered burns to over 40% of his body after his patrol car was rear-ended at over 100 mph and burst into flames.

Opposes:

  • Arizona Free Enterprise Club
Learn More

City and Town (Non-Partisan)

Legislative District 17 contains the majority of the City of Chandler, parts of the Town of Gilbert, and all of Sun Lakes, which is a census designated place (CDP).

Municipalities generally take responsibility for parks and recreation services, police and fire departments, housing services, emergency medical services, municipal courts, transportation services (including public transportation), and public works (streets, sewers, snow removal, signage, and so forth). Our elected representatives ensure that staff carries out these functions effectively and are held accountable by voters.

Learn More

City of Chandler

A new franchise agreement with Southwest Gas will be on the ballot. This agreement will set the terms of the working relationship between the City of Chandler and Southwest Gas for the next 25 years.

Learn More

The City of Chandler City Council race was decided in the August 4th Primary Election and will not appear on the ballot for the General Election.

View Results

Town of Gilbert

The Council seats for Town of Gilbert were decided in the August 4th Primary Election. The results can be found HERE.

The Mayoral race is heading for a runoff.

Learn More

School Boards (Non-Partisan)

Governing board members are elected, unpaid volunteers. They are responsible for approving curriculum, setting the direction, establishing the structure, providing support, ensuring fiscal accountability, selecting the Superintendent for the district, and much more.

Save Our Schools AZ compiled a comprehensive list of school board candidates that they recommend supporting.

School board candidates that earned their support have pledged to:

  • Publicly acknowledge their role as an advocate for public education beyond school board meetings to parents, community leaders and state policymakers
  • Publicly advocate for a permanent, dedicated funding stream for public education made up of new dollars from the General Fund
  • Publicly resolve or affirm any public resolution, if it becomes available to school boards, opposing any expansion of ESA private school vouchers
  • Publicly oppose the diversion of any portion of their district’s funding to privatization schemes, including (but not limited to) charter co-location or microschool vouchers
  • Support the reopening of schools (save for a highly selective group of students with verified special needs) only when Arizona meets specific scientific benchmarks for COVID-19, such as those published by the World Health Organization
See SOSAZ
Endorsed Candidates

Maricopa Community Colleges

The Maricopa County Community College District’s Governing Board has seven seats, including five elected positions from geographical districts within Maricopa County and two at-large positions representing the entire county. Board members serve staggered four-year terms. The majority of LD 17 is represented by District 1. The San Pedro and Fiesta Ranch precincts are represented by District 2.

MCDP maintains a list of candidates that align with Democratic values.

See Democratic Aligned Candidates

Chandler Unified School District

The five CUSD Governing Board members are elected by the voters of the Chandler Unified School District. They work to maintain high levels of excellence in education.

NOTE: Sharon Tuttle is running as a write-in candidate. In order to cast a vote for her, you will need to write her name EXACTLY as Sharon Tuttle. Misspelled or abbreviated names will not count.

Learn More About
Sharon Tuttle

CUSD Candidates.
SanTan Sun News Article

Gilbert Public Schools

The Board is authorized under the laws of the state of Arizona to adopt all needed policies and regulations for the organization, evaluation, and governance in the District. The Board shall act as the general agent of the state of Arizona in carrying out the will of the people of this District in the matter of public education.

This election cycle, the GPS School Board race is uncontested. Incumbent Reed Carr, incumbent Lori Wood, and incumbent Sheila Rogers Uggetti were elected without opposition to three at-large seats on the Gilbert Public Schools Governing Board. Their names will not appear on the general election ballot.

GPS Candidates.
Gilbert Sun News Article

Mesa Public Schools

The five Board members are elected by the voters of the district and serve a four-year term without pay. Each January, the Board selects a president and clerk to serve for the calendar year.

Kiana Sears is running for reelection to the Mesa School Board.

Learn More About
Kiana Sears

MPS Candidates
East Vally Tribune Article

Maricopa County Special Health Care District (Non-Partisan)

The Maricopa County Special Health Care District is a five-member board that oversees Arizona’s only public health care system, Valleywise Health. Valleywise Health serves as a safety net for the poor and as a teaching hospital. Only District 1 has a contested seat and will be on your ballot.

Candidates

  • Mary A. Harden is seeking her third term and has been a registered nurse at Valleywise Health Medical Center for 32 years. She also serves on the board of Valleywise Health Foundation, a nonprofit that raises money for education, research, and patient services.
  • John B. Farnsworth is the Chief Financial Officer at Orange-Sol.
Read the Article
In AZ Republic

Judges (Non-Partisan)

The Arizona Commission on Judicial Performance Review lists judicial performance reviews for all of the judges that will be on the ballot. These are ratings done by other lawyers.

In addition, the website Civic Engagement Beyond Voting has done extensive research on these judges, including data from the previously mentioned Judicial Performance Review, The Federalist Society, The Robing Room, DM Cantor, public financial statements, and news sources including the Arizona Republic, Twitter, and Facebook.

Based on their research, a NO vote is recommended for these judges:

Supreme Court

  • Andrew W. Gould
  • John Lopez IV

Appellate Court, Division 1

  • James Morse Jr
  • Jennifer Perkins
  • David Weinzweig

Superior Court

  • Christopher A. Coury
  • Jo Lynn Gentry
See CEBV
Judicial Reviews

Election 2020 Videos

Watch these videos to learn more about voting in the general election, ballot initiatives, our LD 17 Democratic candidates, and other candidates on the ballot this year.

Jennifer Pawlik, State House, LD 17

More Videos on Facebook

AJ Kurdoglu, State Senate, LD 17

More Videos on Facebook

More Election 2020 Videos

Additional Election Resources

Always take the time to do your research so you can be an informed voter. Here is a list of more trusted sites with valuable election research and information.