Phoenix Mayoral Election 2011

[pbenjamin]

I tend to like Jon Talton more than most people here, and I am supporting Stanton. I am horrified, though, to see Talton say that Peggy Bilsten should have been mayor.

[HooverDam]

^Yah Bilsten was amazingly stupid, that comment surprised me too. Maybe Talton just had a crush on her.

I thought I'd post this interview from Blooming Rock with Greg Stanton from a while back, if you were on the fence about him being the best urbanist candidate, this should do the trick:

http://bloomingrock.com/?p=1007

[trigirdbers]

Hmmmm, law school at the University of Michigan, not a dumb fellow this Stanton.

[HooverDam]

So this is coming up if anyone's interested....

http://downtownvoices.org/2011/05/31...-forum-june-9/

Downtown Voices Coalition presents a downtown-centric mayoral forum, Thursday, June 9, 2011 – 6:30-8:30pm, Park Room, Lexington Hotel, 1100 N. Central, Phoenix.

The Downtown Voices Coalition announces its first Downtown Mayor’s Forum. We are very excited to bring the candidates together for a downtown-centric discussion. Any and all residents of Phoenix are encouraged to attend.

Candidates scheduled to participate are Thane Eichenauer, Wes Gullett, Councilman Claude Mattox, Peggy Neely, and Greg Stanton. Arizona Republic Reporter Richard Ruelas has agreed to serve as moderator.

To spice things up, the format will include questions from one candidate to another. The forum will take place at the newly acquired and soon to be renovated Lexington Hotel at 1100 N. Central Avenue, which is one block north of the Roosevelt and Central light rail stop.

Seating is limited, so if you are interested in attending, please come early to get a seat in the meeting space. Additional seating will be available in the Cycle restaurant and bar, with the audio from the forum piped into the general sound system. Cycle restaurant, which rotates chefs every month, will feature its in-house menu for the evening.

Downtown Voices Coalition is a coalition of stakeholder organizations that embrace growth in downtown Phoenix, but is mindful that healthy growth should be based upon existing downtown resources — the vibrancy of neighborhoods, the strength of the arts community, the uniqueness of historic properties, and the wonderful small businesses that dot downtown. All of these assets should be stepping stones to be built upon, rather than shattered in the wake of rampant downtown development. For more information about Downtown Voices, please visit http://www.downtownvoices.org/

[SunDevil]

Originally Posted by trigirdbers

Hmmmm, law school at the University of Michigan, not a dumb fellow this Stanton.

Meh, Even those that get into and graduate from the tip top of law schools, which Michigan isn't (but is close), can be less savvy, intelligent, and successful than someone from, say, Univ of Minn. Now, the more elite the law school one goes to (gets accepted into) the greater chance of success, but, it's highly debatable whether that is due to the education or due to the connections.

Then again I'm a little bias on the whole subject (did not attend Univ of Minn.).

[PhxDowntowner]

One of the things holding Arizona back is the lack of respect (bordering disrespect) many of its residents have for quality education institutions.

[westbev93]

I don't think that observation was disrespectful toward Michigan's law school. Stanton is intelligent, but you should draw that conclusion based on hearing him speak rather than simply where he went to school.

The appellate judge I clerked for after graduation used to say that Harvard law grads were no smarter than grads from ASU. He said the only difference was that the Harvard grads were merely more confident (or cocky) because they went to Harvard and thought they were superior to everyone. Confidence can be an asset in a litigator (as well as their downfall), but it is not synonymous with intelligence.

Trust me, I've seen plenty of dumb arguments come from elite school lawyers. Meanwhile, the most talented trial lawyer I've ever seen went to Cal Western, which if you know, is a 3rd tier school.

At least with legal education, one thing holding AZ back is the second-best mentality. Law school rankings are based on really subjective and screwy criteria. Michigan is ranked highly because, in large part, it has been around a long time and lawyers/judges know of the school. So it gets high reputation points. Meanwhile, ASU's law school is not yet 50 years old so it doesn't have the long-standing reputation, notwithstanding that the education is just as good and the admissions just as selective.

[SunDevil]

Originally Posted by PhxDowntowner

One of the things holding Arizona back is the lack of respect (bordering disrespect) many of its residents have for quality education institutions.

I think part of what's holding AZ back is the complete opposite, people here view the local universities, especially ASU, as being glorified community colleges that aren't worth funding simply because they don't rate as high as other schools in US News and World Reports.

You know that the ranking of ASU and UofA dropped several places due to SB1070? It's because a large component of the rankings is based upon what professors and presidents at other schools think, basically, reputation. If the goal is to find the schools that best educate, reputation shouldn't even be a factor. So, I'm not going to kiss the ass of Michigan, Stanford, Virgina, Yale... etc.

[phxSUNSfan]

Originally Posted by westbev93

Meanwhile, ASU's law school is not yet 50 years old so it doesn't have the long-standing reputation, notwithstanding that the education is just as good and the admissions just as selective.

ASU's law school isn't ranked too far behind Minnesota or Michigan. Many schools are tied and rankings are not counted in order; 5 schools can be tied for 10, then the next school ranked 11th would actually be 15th. ASU is a top 50 school for 2011 (ranked 40th for law). Likewise, many of ASU's colleges are highly ranked: W.P. Carey, Cronkite, School of Public Policy, Nursing, etc...

What holds ASU's (and all state universities really) ranking low is that the schools have a relatively lax selection process due to state law and rolling admissions. The separate colleges have tougher admissions criteria hence, much higher rankings.

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsa...ankings/page+2

[HooverDam]

Alex Malkoon last to enter Phoenix mayoral race



Alexander Malkoon waited until the absolute last day allowed to declare himself a candidate for the office of Phoenix mayor. Malkoon said it was a big decision he had to work out with his family, but in the end, wanted to run because there are many changes he hopes to make in Phoenix.

As mayor, Malkoon said he would like to see two at-large seats added to the City Council, reduce the city’s public safety costs and encourage development along the city’s canal banks.

This is not the first time he has run for office. In 1983, when he was a student at Arizona State University, Malkoon ran for Phoenix City Council in District 8 against Calvin C. Goode, who won the race and served on council for 22 years. He also served on the bond committee that helped Phoenix preserve North Mountain, South Mountain and Squaw Peak.

Malkoon has spent most of his career as a vice president or senior operations manager for companies such as MCI and OnlineSelfStorage.com but has recently taken a break. Malkoon lives in north-central Phoenix with his wife, two sons and two daughters.

Malkoon, 52, was born and raised in Phoenix. Malkoon has been serving on the Alhambra Village Planning Commission.

Anna Brennan, Thane Eichanauer, Wes Gullett, Claude Mattox, Peggy Neely, Greg Stanton and Jennifer Wright are also running for mayor. The Phoenix City Clerk is reviewing candidate nominating petitions to see who qualifies for the Aug. 30 ballot.

I'm not familiar with this guy, is anyone else? Sounds like the local equivalent of a minor party candidate with little chance to win. But the area's I bolded are all solid ideas, hopefully he can help the City in someway in a non Mayoral capacity.

Also, I've totally psyched myself into a Stanton victory. If he doesn't win I'm going to be so depressed. It was a bummer when Brewer won for Governor, but I expect it. Stanton seems like he should win, I hope Neely's deep pocketed sprawl machine buddies don't power her to a win.

Can you imagine if we had Neely as Mayor and Brewer as Governor? How can a State with the prettiest women in the world have those two goblins in Office- bleck!

[westbev93]

Right now it seems like Stanton's to lose although it is still early. Malkoon sounds like he has some good ideas, but seems like he's aiming for a similar constituency as Stanton. Neely has the sprawl machine backing, but those guys are broke these days. Now's the time to rip power out of their hands.

[HooverDam]

And speaking of Stanton, the Arizona Police Association has decided to endorse him:

Arizona Police Association Announce Their Endorsement of Greg Stanton for Mayor of Phoenix
June 7, 2011 — Arizona Police Association Press Release
PHOENIX—Brian Livingston, Executive Director of the Arizona Police Association, (APA) announced today that the APA has endorsed Greg Stanton as Mayor of Phoenix in the August 30th election.

“With five candidates running for Mayor, the citizens of Phoenix have a critical decision to make August 30th as to who will run the fifth largest city in the country the next four years,” Livingston stressed. “We need a chief executive in Phoenix who works well with the Legislature; listens to constituents and has a good working relationship with city employees.”

“Greg Stanton’s priorities are creating quality jobs, supporting strong schools and improving public safety. We need that focus in our next Mayor and we need a leader with his proven independence and ability to get things done. Having served Phoenix as a City Councilman for nine years, Greg also served as Deputy Attorney General, focusing on tackling border crime, eliminating abusive payday lenders and protecting Luke Air Force base. These are goals he shares with APA members and, we believe, the community at large,” Livingston concluded.

“I am honored and humbled to have the support of the Arizona Police Association and its membership in my campaign for Mayor of Phoenix,” Stanton stated. “My goal is to build a Phoenix with strong neighborhoods, excellent public schools and a robust, diverse economy. The work ahead of us is important. The decisions we make now will shape the future of our city for our families and neighborhoods, for our businesses and schools.”

APA represents more than 10,000 rank and file law enforcement officers who are members of 23 law enforcement associations in Arizona. For more information visit www.azpolice.org.

I imagine that could prove to be rather noteworthy. It could attract those on the Right who maybe don't care/aren't educated about things like urbanism, transportation, sustainability, walkability, etc.

[westbev93]

Helps to offset the firefighters, who I believe are backing Mattox.

[combusean]

westbev, where do you see that Stanton's going to lose? He is extremely well liked in the city, he's polling the best, and the statistical models indicate that he'd have to lose in district 6 to lose the city which isn't going to happen. The introduction of candidates like Jennifer Wright are only going to hurt Neely, Mattox, and Gullett. I've only seen more negative reactions online about Neely's candidacy as she is not well liked in her district these days and everything I have read about Stanton has been extremely positive.

Hoover, I mentioned the issues that have been discussed here about increasing the number of City Council districts to Stanton a while ago and he actually suggested adding a couple at-large districts although it's not presently part of his official platform. There are pluses and minuses to the way we have it presently set up, either way Stanton was absolutely amenable to further study of the issue.

[westbev93]

I didn't write it clearly enough, sorry. It was supposed to mean "this race is Stanton's to lose." As in, he is clearly the front runner.

[PhxDowntowner]

Originally Posted by combusean

The introduction of candidates like Jennifer Wright are only going to hurt Neely, Mattox, and Gullett.

Wright doesn't help Stanton at all. She just complicates which Republican is going to make it to the November ballot.

[dtnphx]

Originally Posted by westbev93

I didn't write it clearly enough, sorry. It was supposed to mean "this race is Stanton's to lose." As in, he is clearly the front runner.

It was clear to me what you meant!

[HooverDam]

Originally Posted by combusean

Hoover, I mentioned the issues that have been discussed here about increasing the number of City Council districts to Stanton a while ago and he actually suggested adding a couple at-large districts although it's not presently part of his official platform. There are pluses and minuses to the way we have it presently set up, either way Stanton was absolutely amenable to further study of the issue.

Awesome, I think the thing I like most about Stanton is he seems open to new ideas and forward thinking. My next article over on Blooming Rock is going to be about reforming PHX's City charter and while I certainly don't have the perfect model or system it is something I'd like to get out in the either for discussion.

Originally Posted by PhxDowntowner

Wright doesn't help Stanton at all. She just complicates which Republican is going to make it to the November ballot.

Huh? The PHX Mayoral race is in August and is non partisan, so that fact that Stanton is technically a Democrat and the others may be technically Republicans doesn't matter per se.

[gymratmanaz]

Article in the Republic today was saying that Peggy Neely is the frontrunner, with also more money in a war-chest than anyone. How was this determined???

[westbev93]

That is a recent development if Neely does have the most. As of last month, I thought Mattox had the most money banked between this campaign plus what he had left from last time he ran for council.