By Jon C. Altmann
jon@jonaltman..com
Distributed by Media News Services
Exclusively to American Freedom
Some of Maricopa
County's lesser races are shaping up as no contests for some, for others, a
rival of some old names.
County Supervisors
Recently former
Phoenix District 3 Councilman Bill Gates will have no opponent in his race to
replace retiring County District 3 Supervisor Andy Kunasek. No one else of any party is running. Only Maricopa Supervisor District 1 will have
a Republic versus Democrat race in November with GOP incumbent Denny Barney
facing off with Democrat Matthew Cerra.
JP races - Desert Ridge, Moon Valley may be
heated races
The Justice of
Peace (JP) races bring back some old family names. The position pays $101,500 annually and the
JPs are part of the elected officials retirement system. In the Arcadia Biltmore JP race, Lenore
Driggs, wife of LD28 State Senator Adam Driggs, is now the sole candidate after
both the Republican and Democrat challengers withdrew from the race. Driggs is a graduate of Arizona State
University and holds an Arizona Provision Elementary Education license. Adam Driggs is not running for re-election to
the Legislature and is returning to full-time law practice.
The Desert Ridge
race may be hotly contested this year with incumbent Clancy Jayne is facing
three Republican challengers in the primary.
One of them, Cathy Riggs, an Arizona native, holds a law degree and has
been a police officer and police academy instructor. She is married to former Republican
California Congressman Frank Riggs. An
independent, Keith Evans, is also on the ballot. Evans is a practicing attorney and Navy
Reservist who has donated time to help homeless veterans. The other Republican is Jeff Schapira, who
has run against Jayne in a previous election.
The Moon Valley JP
race is an open seat. Former State
Representative Carl Seel is on the ballot running against Andrew Hettinger. Hettinger, a BYU graduate and graduate of the
University of Texas - Austin Law School.
Hettinger is married with a four-year-old. Known to this writer, while
Seel was walking one Phoenix neighborhood for signatures, he knocked on the
door of a Democratic Party consultant.
The consultant related to me that Seel apparently did not have a walking
list. Regardless, Seel has secured a
ballot spot in the primary.
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