A runoff election for Tempe City Council will be held for the first time since 2014. Four candidates will face off for two seats.
According to a press release of the unofficial final results, City Council member Arlene Chin received 18.55% of the votes in the primary election, meeting the majority threshold and retaining her seat on the council.
Chin was the only candidate to win the required number of votes, according to the press release. Challengers Elvis Taska and Joe Forte were eliminated, while incumbents Jennifer Adams and Berdetta Hodge remain in the race alongside challengers Bobby Nichols and Brooke St. George.
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The two candidates who receive the most votes in the runoff will be elected to the City Council, according to the press release.
Ballots will be mailed to voters on April 22, according to the city of Tempe website. Election Day will be on Tuesday, May 19.
Jennifer Adams
Adams received 14.01% of the votes in the primary election, the lowest of the four candidates in the runoff, according to the press release. Heading into the runoff, Adams expressed optimism.
"I feel like there were a lot of people in the race and so it really spread out the numbers, but I feel really good about the direction of my campaign and confident that I'm going to pull this off," Adams said.
Since then, Adams said she has made some changes to her campaign.
"I have changed some of my leadership team, and it's going a lot better than it was," Adams said. "I feel like my current leadership team is really in touch with what the voters want for their city."
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Similar to her campaign values in the primary election, Adams said she is focusing on reaching more voters and emphasizing sustainable practices and infrastructure improvements.
Adams said her experience in Tempe City Council thus far has prepared her to best serve the community.
"I love Tempe, I work really hard, I listen to residents, I solve problems quickly," Adams said. "I have the experience necessary to lead the city in a positive direction."
Berdetta Hodge
Hodge received 14.78% of the votes in the primary election, according to the press release. She did not respond to requests for comment.
According to Hodge's biography on the city of Tempe Councilmember Candidate webpage, her campaign focuses on improving affordable housing, public safety, transportation, small business support and youth and family services.
Hodge also focuses on "ensuring that Tempe remains a city where every resident feels seen, valued, and supported," according to the webpage.
The biography also highlights Hodge's accomplishments in becoming the first African American woman elected in the city of Tempe and her experience on the City Council.
Bobby Nichols
Nichols secured 14.61% of the votes in the primary election, according to the press release, and said he feels great about the results despite being the last candidate to join the race.
"We came in with virtually no name recognition, we didn't take any money from corporate developers, from corporate lobbyists, from monopoly utilities, from private landlords," Nichols said.
With the results, Nichols was able to see how well he did in different precincts and has adjusted his approach to canvassing.
"Right now we're trying to improve in areas that had really high turnout and areas that we could have done a little better," Nichols said.
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On policy, he is still focused on affordability, accountability, transparency and good governance. He also said his experience as an attorney makes him different from the other candidates.
Nichols also criticized the current practices of the City Council, which he said had ignored residents and hurt people struggling in the city. He said he would implement an "empathy-focused effort" and put "people over profits."
"The way that your city treats people in crisis is how they will treat you when you're in crisis," Nichols said.
Brooke St. George
St. George won 16.06% of the votes, making her the highest contender from the primary election after Chin, according to the press release. She said she was "thrilled" at the results.
She said she is excited to be in the runoff, but also discussed the importance of continuing to work hard.
"I have run campaigns for long enough to know that I need to still run like I'm 10 points behind and act like it's an even playing field," St. George said. "I'm just energized, and very, at the same time, humble, because I truly didn't expect to be in that position in the primary."
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St. George also said her campaign still focuses on the same values as before, including protecting essential city services without raising taxes.
"I don't want to make life more expensive, so I am running on an affordability platform, but really in making sure that our city budget is tight and streamlined and spending money in ways that have measurable outcomes for community priorities," St. George said.
Other things her campaign emphasizes are caring for the senior population and centering community perspectives in decision-making to be "an elected representative of those voices."
St. George also said voter turnout is critical and people should participate in local politics because it "affects our lives the most."
According to the city of Tempe website, May 12 is the recommended final day to mail back ballots. All ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on May 19 to be counted.
Edited by Carsten Oyer, Jack McCarthy and Pippa Fung.
Reach the reporter at msweador@asu.edu and follow @miasweador on X.
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