One more week: That’s all we have left until Arizona decides who its next governor will be. One more week of the inevitable squabbling of modern politics, laden with hyperbolic claims of success and controversial attacks on opponent’s history. Whoever emerges the victor between Democratic candidate Fred DuVal and Republican candidate Doug Ducey, our reactions are going to be accompanied with relief. Here are some things we’re looking forward to:
1) Our inboxes will be freed of the barrage of requests for donations from organizations like Republican Governors Association and Democratic Governors Association. First, as college students, we spend more nights eating ramen than attending galas, so we can’t really be charitable. Second, it can be frustrating to be reminded of just how influential money is in U.S. elections. An Arizona Republic article published Sunday revealed the degree to which lobbyist efforts are shaping the Arizona gubernatorial elections. The report states, “Through mid-October, about 11 percent of DuVal's $2.3 million in contributions from individuals came from those who have registered as lobbyists, while more than 6.5 percent of Ducey's $2.8 million in donations from individuals was from lobbyists.”
2) We can reclaim Cold Stone Creamery for what it is: a place to buy ice cream, and not the focal point of a political battle. Some blame Ducey for causing the failure of a number of Cold Stone franchises, while others consider his tenure as CEO of the Scottsdale-based creamery successful and an indication of his business acumen. Regardless, we can’t wait to crush Oreos over our frozen desserts in peace.
3) Politicians will still try to appeal to the population in countless different ways and be slightly embarrassing, but at least there won't be so much. We can all do without watching DuVal trying to seem like your everyday guy, as he did in this tweet.
#TeamFred watching the game. #GoCards! pic.twitter.com/nVBJQSyx0h
— Fred DuVal (@FredDuVal) October 26, 2014
didn’t realize his license was suspended.
4) Following that point, driving will become a little less stressful. We’re looking forward to the removal of the enormous signs marking the street corners of Arizona. In fact, campaign signage was such a problem over summer in Pima County that local municipalities forced four Republican campaigns to take down signs. Thankfully, it didn’t get that bad here in the Valley, but we’ve still had to deal with it for nearly two months.
5) No matter who wins, our next governor will come into the position more gracefully than his predecessor, Gov. Jan Brewer. Former-governor Janet Napolitano’s departure for the Department of Homeland Security left our state with Brewer at the helm and made the 2010 election somewhat dissatisfying; Brewer had the undeserved advantage of being the incumbent against then-Attorney General Terry Goddard.
6) Perhaps the best of them all: no more vicious TV ads. Childish attacks from supporters can be found on both Ducey’s and DuVal’s sides. We’re ready for television to be rid of these annoyances — until next election, that is.
In short, Nov. 4 can’t come soon enough. It's been a compelling election cycle, but we're ready for it to be over.
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