The mayoral election for Phoenix, Arizona, United States, in 2011 was held in a two-round system on August 30, 2011, and November 8, 2011. Greg Stanton, a former city councilman, was elected over Wes Gullett, and took office on January 3, 2012, succeeding Phil Gordon, who held the office of Mayor of Phoenix from 2004 to 2012.[1][2] The election coincided with the PhoenixCity Council elections to the four odd-numbered districts (1, 3, 5, 7).[3]
Background
Due to the City of Phoenix's limit of two four-year terms,[4] current Mayor Phil Gordon was ineligible to run for mayor again. As all municipal elections in the City of Phoenix are nonpartisan, the political affiliations of the respective candidates were not present on the ballot paper. In addition, the race was widely regarded as very competitive compared to previous elections, as the last three incumbent mayors ran with little to no opposition.[5]
Candidates
All candidates had to at least 1500 signatures to appear on the August 30 ballot. The city clerk reviewed the signatures and candidates with enough valid signatures appeared on the ballot; the City Clerk had until June 11 at the latest to review all candidates' signatures.[6][7][8] Thane Eichenauer failed to collect enough signatures to formally appear on the ballot, but said that he would run a write-in campaign.[7][8] Alexander Malkoon also fell just short of the 1,500 signatures needed, complimented the slate of remaining candidates and announced he would not run as a write in candidate.[7][8]
The following candidate collected enough signatures to appear on the ballot:[9]
On Tuesday, May 10, 2011, the Arizona Legislative District 11 Republican Party invited Republican candidates Peggy Neely, Wes Gullett, Claude Mattox, and Jennifer Wright to a mayoral forum.[16] All but Mattox attended,[17] a Mattox campaign staff member claiming she never received an e-mail of details of the event.[16]
In reaction to the snub, Democratic candidate Greg Stanton said that if a Democratic-sponsored mayoral forum was held, he would not attend if Republicans were excluded.[16]
Stanton vs. Gullett vs. Mattox vs. Neely, Motorola Group 01/24/11 – 01/28/11[9]
Stanton – 17.0%
Gullett – 8.2%
Mattox – 11.2%
Neely – 23.8%
Debates
April 4 debate
Candidates Thane Eichenauer, Wes Gullett, Claude Mattox and Greg Stanton attended the first debate of the campaign.[18] Issues covered included public safety, economic development, education, and the issues of the LGBT community. They addressed the status of Public Safety Manager Jack Harris – who was suspended from overseeing the Phoenix Police Department – and the city's subsidy deal with CityNorth developers, a project that garnered the City of Phoenix a lawsuit over their alleged violation of the gift clause of the Arizona Constitution.[2]
The debate, sponsored by LGBT-rights organization Equality Arizona, saw all candidates claim that they believed in the rights of the gay and lesbian population of Phoenix, with Greg Stanton appearing the most supportive of gay rights, saying "I support equality" when asked if gay and lesbian partnerships should be recognized by the government.
April 19 debate
Phoenix College held the second mayoral forum of the race, with the same four candidates as the first.[19] However, in this debate, Mayoral hopefuls were asked to share their partisan affiliation. Eichenauer said he became a Libertarian when he was a student, Claude Mattox told the crowd that he has been a Republican since he moved to Arizona. Gullett claimed to have been a registered Republican since the 1980s, but supported Janet Napolitano's bid for Governor; meanwhile, Greg Stanton won applause from the liberal-leaning audience when he responded, "I'm a Democrat and have always been a Democrat".[19]
Wes Gullett promised visiting the top 25 businesses of the city within his first 100 days, whilst Greg Stanton pledged more accountability and transparency in government.[19]
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