Growth fuels GOP hopes in Pinal elections

The theme of local politics in Pinal County this season has been the strides made by Republicans. Bolstered by better electoral numbers countywide, the party has a legitimate shot in November to take seats in general government, the Board of Supervisors, Superior Court and the sheriff's office, say political observers.

SLIDESHOW: Candidates take part in a Pinal County forum

Republicans have never held important elected seats in Pinal County. And the local party is still lacking the type of organization for candidates to rely on it for vital fundraising, party members acknowledge.

However, even Democratic Party members agree that Republicans have made noticeable political progress. They also assert that the competition across the election slate has helped bring their own party together.

"They've been trying to compete for years and years ... and this is as close as they've come," said Joe Robison, chairman of Pinal County Democrats. "What it's made us do is be more organized. We opened up an office in Florence last year, and that's precisely why we did it."

Democrats still have an inherent numbers advantage countywide - but that margin has become much slimmer over the last four years as suburban growth has exploded in places like Johnson Ranch and other developments in the northeast part of the county.

The most recent voter statistics show registered Democrats at 50,178, Republicans at 48,192 and 41,628 other voters from smaller parties or voters who didn't declare a party.

The difference between Democrats and Republicans is slightly more than 1 percent across the county. Just four years ago, Democrats had an 8 percent advantage over Republicans, according to county recorder statistics.

That shrinking margin has helped create competition for general government offices such as treasurer, assessor and recorder.

Meanwhile, Bryan Martyn, a Republican, is running to replace Sandie Smith, a Democrat, on the Board of Supervisors. David Snider, a Democratic incumbent, is facing Tom Hollenbach, a Republican, for another seat on the three-member board.

Sheriff Chris Vasquez, a Democrat who was elected in 2006, is being challenged by Republican Paul Babeu, a Chandler police officer. And Democratic Judge Janna Vanderpool is being contested by Republican Steve Fuller, a former Pinal County prosecutor.

The sheer number of Republicans challenging for office has party operatives optimistic.

"I would be very surprised if it's not historic," said Tommy Tucker, head of the local Republican Party. "That doesn't necessarily mean that we will take the full slate ... but we're energized as a group. We have people who heretofore haven't considered county politics nearly as seriously."

Considering the decadeslong lock that Democrats have had on county offices, it won't take much for the Republicans to make it a historic election.

Republicans have been banging on a message of change in their bids to unseat Democrats. Former County Manager Stan Griffis was sentenced to 3 1/2 years of prison in 2007 for embezzling county funds and it occurred while many incumbents were in office.

Republican Rayna Palmer, CEO of the Apache Junction Chamber of Commerce, is running against Democrat Dolores Doolittle, a longtime officeholder who is married to Terry Doolittle, now county manager. Terry Doolittle was an assistant to Griffis. Dolores Doolittle did not return a phone call to her office Thursday.

"I believe there is a defining issue," Palmer said. "Pinal County has an extreme black eye, and it's not just the press. My message to constituents is that you have never had a choice before - now you do."

Robison contends that the problem with the county's corruption was excised when Griffis was removed from office in 2005.

"They say they are going to stop corruption, but the corruption has already stopped," Robison said.

A race that is the major focus of the Republican Party is the supervisor's contest in District 2. Martyn has used strong fundraising and well-connected Republican Party veterans to guide his candidacy into the November election.

He also has been aided by the retirement of longtime Supervisor Smith, who held the seat for 16 years. Four years ago, the district was heavily Republican as it is now, but the Democratic Smith handily won the seat.

Martyn faces Elliot Fisher, an independent, and Mary Shope, a Democrat, in the general election. Martyn has raised more than $43,000 to Shope's nearly $7,000. Fisher has raised hundreds of dollars in his bid for the spot.

Many Republicans say they have had to fund their campaigns through friends and associates without the help of a strong Republican network. Martyn, however, has received funding from some of the same developers and land-use attorneys that donated to Smith in 2004. Shope says she has backed away from that network for a reason.

"Taking developer money is a conflict of interest. It seems pretty clear," she said. "I'm going to be voting on the very proposals that they would bring to me."