POLITICAL MAP GETS POLITICAL

posted to Political Buzz by Christopher Conover

The first email criticizing the map came from Governor Jan Brewer. She called it “gerrymandering at its worst.” The Governor also said the Independent Redistricting Commission misused its authority to draw a Congressional map that is “every Democrat’s dream.”

A few minutes later, US Senators John McCain and Jon Kyl sent out a joint statement saying the proposed map was made in a political and not a fair way. The statement was quickly followed by an email from Republican Congressman Jeff Flake who is running for US Senate. Flake said the IRC sacrificed communities of interest to make competitive districts.

And moments after that, the state Democratic Party sent out a release decrying what they see as a coordinated Republican attack on the IRC.

The map is now open to public comment.

DECAMP HAS ATYPICAL ENDORSEMENT

posted to Political Buzz by Andrea Kelly

Endorsements are a regular part of elections. Candidates use them to tout their range of supporters, and they're not usually newsworthy, with some exceptions.

So far, in the Tucson city election cycle, we've heard about a few groups endorsing Democratic Mayoral candidate Jonathan Rothschild, including several area labor unions, the Sierra Club and the city police and fire unions.

There hasn't been much endorsement news from Republican Mayoral candidate Rick Grinnell, and he doesn't list endorsements on his website.

But one of the more unexpected endorsements to find its way to the AZPM political reporters is for Green Mayoral candidate Mary DeCamp. Instead of mentioning the usual list of organizations who support her, DeCamp provided a copy of a letter in which her ex-husband says he supports her candidacy.

In the letter, he says he's known her for more than 30 years and would make a good leader for Tucson, and it's dated July 1, 2011, showing he supported her through her primary campaign, too.

"She has the energy of two teenagers. She is able to get things done quickly, efficiently, ethically, and accurately," he wrote.

UPCOMING IRC MEETING COULD BE HELD IN TUCSON

posted to AZ Week Notebook by Melanie Huonker

The Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission may add a public meeting in Tucson on Oct. 10, time and location to be announced, on its congressional draft map.

The meeting is a part of 30 days of public comment following the approval of the map on Monday, according to Stuart Robinson, public information officer for the commission.

The approval came days after some groups were urging the commission to rethink district lines in Southern Arizona. One group was the Hispanic Coalition for Good Government. It denounced the map, claiming it would dilute minority representation in Pima County and shift it to Maricopa County. This, they argue, will cause Tucson’s interests to not be fairly represented.

Pima County Supervisor Richard Elias spoke on behalf of the advocacy group in a letter to the IRC. He addressed their primary concern that the redrawing of Southern Arizona district lines “would ultimately impermissibly frustrate the ability of Hispanics to elect a candidate of their choice.”

But if you watched our program two weeks ago on the IRC topic, Richard Gilman, leading contributor to thinkingArizona.com, said his research shows that majority-minority districts don’t always elect a minority candidate as their person of choice. It ultimately comes down to their ability to represent a district, rather than their status as a minority, Gilman said.

The draft map proposes that three of Arizona's nine congressional districts will be competitive, thus equally pitting Republicans and Democrats against each other for a win. Democrats Ed Pastor and Raul Grijalva will likely keep their seats in Democratic-leaning districts that are also the state's two majority-minority districts. The remaining four are Republican-leaning.

Tell us what you think of the congressional draft map. Arizona Week wants your feedback for coverage of the IRC in a coming program.

CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING MAP, PART 2

posted to Political Buzz by Michael Chihak

The Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission voted 3-1, with one member abstaining, on the latest version of a congressional district map. It now goes to public hearings for 30 days.

The map adds a ninth congressional district, based on the state's population growth in the last decade. That ninth district will largely encompass a population around Phoenix.

A key feature of the map is that two districts, from Tucson's west side to the southwestern corner of the state and a second from west Phoenix to the Maricopa County western line with La Paz County, remain intact as majority-minority districts.

That could help satisfy dictates of the U.S. Justice Department and the Voting Rights Act.

Republican Commissioner Richard Stertz voted against the proposed map, saying he had not been given enough time to study the numbers. Republican Commissioner Scott Freeman abstained. Democrats Linda McNulty and Jose Herrera and independent Colleen Mathis voted for it.

POVERTY IN ARIZONA; NOT A PRETTY PICTURE

posted to AZ Week Notebook by Michael Chihak

The effects of the economic downturn and resultant governmental and nonprofit budget reductions on poverty will be the topic of Friday's Arizona Week.

Arizona's poverty rate went down slightly from 2009 to 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, but it is still fourth worst in the country. The Cronkite News Service detailed the statistics in a report last month.

For Friday, we will interview Penelope Jacks, director of the Children's Action Alliance Southern Arizona office. The alliance tracks information about child and family welfare and advocates on their behalf.

We also are seeking interviews with the director of the Community Action Human Resources Agency in Eloy to get a picture of the issues in rural Arizona, an official with the Arizona Department of Economic Security and officials of food banks and homeless shelters around the state.

CORTES REMAINS ON BALLOT TO CHALLENGE PEARCE

posted to Political Buzz by Andrea Kelly

A Maricopa County Superior Court judge said today Jerry Lewis and Olivia Cortes will both appear on the ballot to run against Senate President Russell Pearce in his recall election.

The ruling came after a challenge to Cortes’ candidacy, in which Pearce critics said she was a sham candidate, only on the ballot to split the anti-Pearce vote and allow him to retain his seat.

Maricopa County Judge Edward Burke said in his ruling early voting is already underway, and voters should decide whether Cortes deserves the seat.

The lawsuit claimed Pearce supporters recruited Cortes, and while the judge agreed that was likely the case, he says Cortes has done nothing wrong.