State representative Juan Mendez (center) speaks to students on the last day of Sparking Democracy, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2014 on Hayden Lawn in Tempe. Undergraduate Student Government sponsored the event to give students a chance to learn about the candidates in the upcoming state election. (Photo by Ben Moffat)
Sparking Democracy wrapped up Thursday with candidates for superintendent and state legislative positions answering student questions and working to get students engaged in the upcoming election.
David Garcia, Democratic candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction, spoke first saying he was excited and looking forward to election day but is disappointed his opponent, Republican Diane Douglas, did not show up to speak.
“I’m a bit disappointed that this is the seventeenth time I’m going to do a forum without an opponent and without a debate,” he said. “To me, I think that is highly problematic, because it means that you don’t get to see both candidates side-by-side, and I think you should. I think that if democracy is going to work, you need to have ideas out there, you need to be able to talk about them and get out there and work with the very people you look to represent.”
Garcia said he wants Arizona to have some of the best public schools in America and believes that goal can be achieved.
“What we need to do in education and what I know we can do in Arizona is that we can have the most innovative public school system in America,” Garcia said. “We can do that, because we are small, and we’re flexible and a little fearless, and that is exactly what you need to have in order to do great things.”
A student asked Andrew Sherwood, Democratic candidate for Arizona House of Representatives for the 26th Legislative District, why he was a Democrat and he said he found that out on his own.
David Garcia, Democratic candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction, speaks to students on the last day of Sparking Democracy, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2014 on Hayden Lawn in Tempe. Undergraduate Student Government sponsored the event to give students a chance to learn about the candidates in the upcoming state election. (Photo by Ben Moffat)
“I’m a proud member of the Democratic party, because I believe we need a referee on the field,” he said. “My family never taught me about Republicans or Democrats or Independents, I had to figure that out on my own and that is part of what I like about the creative process.”
Sherwood went on to speak about education funding and the importance of needing an education budget.
“They’ve slashed funding from Arizona education programs $500 million,” Sherwood said. “You cannot be a pro-education candidate without a pro-education budget.”
Arizona GOP Chairman Robert Graham discussed why he is a Republican and said it involves certain principles.
“I look at what are the ingredients that made an individual successful," he said. “How did they do this and how did they have an impact on this community? I see the principles of a limited government. I see the principles of supporting the value of accomplishment. I see the principles to say that it is OK to be a little better than the next guy.”
Mendez encouraged members of the audience to get out and vote and spoke about the importance of the youth vote.
Arizona Republican Party chairman Robert Graham speaks to students on the last day of Sparking Democracy, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2014 on Hayden Lawn in Tempe. Undergraduate Student Government sponsored the event to give students a chance to learn about the candidates in the upcoming state election. (Photo by Ben Moffat)
“We want to get more people involved in the political process,” he said. “We want more youth to take more responsibility for their role in society. I really want to challenge you guys to imagine what kind of schools we could have if more politicians took your interests seriously.”
Cassidy Possehl, Tempe Undergraduate Student Government president, wrapped up the event thanking the candidates and expressing the importance of the forums.
“I can’t tell you how important it is to have these kind of conversations, particularly at this age when you have some of the youngest subset of the population here and talking about ideology and what it truly means to identify with a party or identify with a vote as you move to the ballots,” she said.
Reach the reporter at jshanco2@asu.edu or follow on Twitter @joey_hancock
