Knaperek in GOP race for Mitchell seat

Former state Rep. Laura Knaperek had been perfectly fulfilled without holding an elected office for the past couple of years.

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She runs a small political consulting firm and serves as executive director of United Families International, a nonprofit organization devoted to maintaining and srengthening families.

On Tuesday, though, the Tempe Republican told the Tribune that she’s entering he 2008 congressional race Arizona’s 5th Congressional District.

“When I see that there is a person representing my district who doesn’t really represent the majority of the voters, I started to ask myself if I should contemplate that,” Knaperek said.

She contemplated it, alright.

Knaperek became the second Republican to formally enter a potentially deep field of Republican candidates.

Lobbyist Jim Ogsbury of Scottsdale is in, and Rep. Mark Anderson, R-Mesa, has formed n exploratory committee to consider it. As many as four other current GOP office holders may join.

The man who forced Knaerek out of public office five years ago spurred her to seek office anew.

By 2002, Knaperek had served eight years in the state house, during which she foused largely on education, health care and family issues. She had reached her term limit and sought the state Senate seat then held by two-term incumbent Democrat Harry Mitchell.

Knaperek moved onto the private sector after Mitchell won.

She regained a state House seat in 2004, but lost her reelection in 2006 — a difficult year for Republicans overall.

Mitchell ran for Congress in 2006 and ousted six-term Republican incumbent J.D. Hayworth.

Mitchell positioned himself as a moderate Democrat when he ran for Congress, but has acted like a liberal Democrat since then, Knaperek said.

“When he votes with Nancy Pelosi 90 percent of the time, it raises eyebrows, at least for me. And I know it does for a number of voters in the district,” she said.

Republicans have a 16-point voter registration advantage against Democrats in the district, which takes in Scottsdale, Tempe, Ahwatukee Foothills, Fountain Hills and west Mesa.

Mitchell has voted with the Democratic majority on 82 percent of the House’s roll-call votes on issues that pitted a majority of Democrats against a minority of Republicans, according to an analysis by the Washington publication Congressional Quarterly.

The score was based on 526 votes through Aug. 4. Pelosi, the House speaker, scored 100 percent.

Mitchell is likely to vote even more closely with the Democratic leadership if he wins a second term, Knaperek said.

However, Mitchell said he votes strictly to represent the district.

“I don’t look at it at all in terms of what is it the leadership wants or the party wants,” he said in a telephone interview. “That’s not how I got here.”