Who’s running for state Legislature?

Primary Election 2022

The Greater Prescott area is represented in the Arizona Legislature, District 1, by two people in the House and one in the Senate.

Currently in office are Reps. Judy Burges and Quang Nguyen, and Sen. Karen Fann. Fann, the Senate president, decided not to run for re-election.

The Primary Election is set for Aug. 2, 2022; ballots go out in the mail and voting begins Wednesday, July 6.

The following people are candidates you will see on your ballot; two advance for each party for the House seats, one each for the Senate.

Arizona House of Representatives, Legislative District 1

Democrats

Cathy Ransom

Age: 57

Occupation / Relevant Experience: Business Manager and Coach at OsteoStrong Sedona and small business owner. Formerly a Legal Advocate for Domestic Violence; Court Appointed Special Advocate for children in foster care; HOA President; Alumni Association President; University of Redlands Trustee

Education: B.A. Philosophy, University of Redlands Johnston Center for Integrated Studies; M.A. Philosophy, San Diego State University

How long have you lived in this district? 19+ years

What made you decided to run and what strengths can you bring to the office?

I am running because the legislature has refused to look at the real problems currently facing us and the Verde Valley hasn't had quality representation since Tom O'Halleran left in 2009. Our public education is underfunded, our water policy is outdated and we have a shortage of care providers in Yavapai County. As a mom, raising a daughter here, I want to make Arizona a place where families can make a good living, raise their kids and watch their grandchildren grow up. As a Clean Elections candidate, I'll bring integrity, common sense and compassion to representing our district.

What are your Top 3 goals, if elected, and what is your top priority for your constituents?

My top priority is updating our antiquated water policy. Our district's future is directly tied to a water policy that effectively guarantees a 100-year water supply for all our residents and businesses. We need a viable framework for stakeholder input, conservation measures with consequences, and active attention from the state legislature, which I look forward to providing. We can only plan our growth efficiently by updating our water policy so we can measure groundwater throughout the Verde Valley and all of rural Arizona.

Our legislature has been overrun by extremist voices and rhetoric. As a mom who understands the power of listening and the importance of recognizing different points of view, I am running to shift the tone and focus of the state legislature. Arizona voters should no longer welcome forces hostile to democracy within our halls of power. I am here to provide a choice for sane and responsible government.

Lastly, our public schools need to retain quality teachers. If we wish to attract economic investment into our rural community, we need a public school system that is competitive for teacher salaries, student/teacher ratios, technology and infrastructure. Our students, schools and teachers deserve our continued support.

Neil Sinclair

Age: 67

Occupation / Relevant Experience: Company chairman

Education: BA Environmental Studies, UC Santa Barbara

How long have you lived in this district? 8 years

What made you decided to run and what strengths can you bring to the office?

I have a background in water and solar energy, electric transportation, and experience as a consumer advocate. I believe that we need to live within nature and not against it. Arizona is now in a historic drought and faces high wildfire risk due at least in part to climate change, which exacerbates hot and dry conditions. I believe that leadership in this and other areas is needed. In discussing this situation with my peers, I was encouraged to run for the state legislature. I am answering this call to duty and believe that I can help the state of Arizona.

What are your Top 3 goals, if elected, and what is your top priority for your constituents?

The state of Arizona is facing a crisis in water. The state's allocation of Colorado River water will be reduced by 20%. Yavapai County and, in general, Legislative District 1 do not receive any water from the Colorado River, but this does not mean that the residents of LD1 should rest easy. While the Prescott area is in a Water Management Area, some parts of LD1 are not. In these unmanaged areas, there is no protection for residents who have their own wells. There have been instances where wells have been drilled that have drained other nearby wells, leaving residents to truck in their water. The state of Arizona needs to monitor its groundwater in the 80% of the state that does not manage its water resources.

My second goal is in education, where Arizona schools have been ranked nationally at or near the bottom of states. Specifically, in average class size, teacher retention, per pupil funding, and counselor to student ratio, Arizona schools are simply not competitive nationally. These problems need to be fixed.

Finally, we have seen the Arizona legislature propose bill after bill making voting more difficult, including trying to eliminate vote by mail. This anti-democratic sentiment should be eliminated.

Republicans

Judy Burges

An incumbent representative, District 1, Burges was unable to respond to the Courier’s requests. According to her candidate info on the Secretary of State’s website:

Judy Burges has remained a true un-apologetic Constitutional Conservative throughout her years of service in the legislature. She considers herself a “We the People” Christian candidate who has a proven history supporting constitutional freedoms such as: the 2nd Amendment, less government, lower taxes, border security, state sovereignty, free speech, school choice, pro-family values, and one’s right-to-life.

President Reagan clearly stated, “Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation from extinction. It is not ours by inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people. Those who have known freedom, and then lost it, have never known it again.”

Quang Nguyen

Age: 59

Occupation / Relevant Experience: Director of Marketing/Branding; incumbent representative, District 1

Education: BA Technology Education, CSU Long Beach

How long have you lived in this district? 18 years

What made you decided to re-run and what strengths can you bring to the office?

I have always followed national political events since my high school years. Politics and history are my main interest as a naturalized American. Having come from and survived the final communist invasion of 1975, I have a strong sense of what it means to preserve freedom that we often take for granted. I felt that Arizona could use someone who has a strong conservative set of values, someone who can create policies that will solve problems such as illegal immigration at the border, election integrity, water shortage, put a stop to the fentanyl crisis, and reclaim our Second Amendment.

What are your Top 3 goals, if re-elected, and what is your top priority for your constituents?

1 - Work with the Water Authority to augment our water management system. It is time for the legislature to seriously provide solutions to add more water to our state as we continue to grow in population.

2 - The legislature needs to continue to work with the next governor to provide funding to close the border and provide resources/manpower to stop the flow of drugs and illegal immigration.

3 - I will re-introduce my bill to severely criminalize fentanyl dealers who killed our children. Nearly 100,000 Americans killed last year and that number will substantially increase. It is time for the legislature to provide the tools so that our prosecutors and law enforcement officers can stop the current trend.

Selina Bliss

Age: 60

Occupation / Relevant Experience: Retired nurse and nurse educator

Education: Doctorate degree in Nursing Education, Bachelor and Master's degrees in Nursing

How long have you lived in this district? 51 years

What made you decided to run/re-run and what strengths can you bring to the office?

I am running because this district deserves legislators who demonstrate leadership and who are engaged in our communities. Arizona is facing numerous challenges and we don’t have time for passive representation at the State Capitol. I bring energy and a fresh perspective that will serve this district and our state well in creating a future where Arizona can achieve its full potential. I am running to get work done and leave this office better than I found it. Finally, I am called to serve the communities in which I was raised and where I stayed to raise my family.

What are your Top 3 goals, if elected, and what is your top priority for your constituents?

A top goal at this time is to secure the border, as we need secure borders to promote legal entry into our country and to discourage human and drug trafficking. Another goal is to restore election integrity because if there is doubt in our elections it shakes the confidence of the voters. A third goal is to fight back against federal assaults on our 2nd Amendment rights by protecting the right of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms. Arizona deserves strong leadership in reaching these goals, and unlike other candidates who only talk about these issues, I have experience in these issues that will help me to promote legislation that protects Arizona.

A top priority for the constituents in LD-1 and Arizona is to provide for economic opportunity. Less governmental regulation and reduced taxation will be critical in protecting our economy. Let’s get Arizonans to work by supporting excellence in education where smart spending is important. As an educator, I believe in empowering others for earned success and not learned helplessness. These priorities and goals are what motivate me to serve as I come from a family of public servants and am called to keep Arizona great!

Ryan Cadigan

Cadigan did not respond to the Courier’s requests. According to his candidate info on the Secretary of State’s website:

We the people, are born with the unalienable rights of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. If my campaign is successful, I will work tirelessly to ensure that those rights will never be infringed upon. I will fight to strengthen our border security, defend the Second Amendment, protect our freedom of speech, improve education and give our voice back to the American people. As people flock to Arizona from every corner of the country, it is now more important than ever that we hold true to the core values that this state was built upon.

Arizona Senate, Legislative District 1

Democrats

Mike Fogel

Age: 64

Occupation / Relevant Experience: Self-employed, retired educator (teacher, coach, and principal), School Board member of Chino Valley Unified School District

Education: BA History, MS Sports Management, Education Leadership Certificate

How long have you lived in this district? 29 years

What made you decided to run and what strengths can you bring to the office?

I decided to run to improve the lives of Yavapai County families and students by reversing the 30+ years of the intentional defunding of public schools in Arizona. I will represent the citizens of Yavapai County and not the business elites of Maricopa County. This made the decision easy to run with the Clean Slate for Democracy campaign as a Clean Election candidate devoted to taking corruption out of politics and strengthening democratic institutions, like public education and voting integrity. I will use positive governance to improve the lives of all Arizonans by fighting for the underdog and common good.

What are your Top 3 goals, if elected, and what is your top priority for your constituents?

My top three goals are to protect this democratic republic by:

1 - strengthening the sacred right to vote by broadening voting opportunities for all eligible voters, preventing efforts to take election results out of the hands of non-partisan groups (the people, not politicians, should decide who wins elections), limiting the power of lobbyists, and increasing Clean Elections funding;

2 - Strengthening one of America's pillars of democracy: traditional public schools that are responsible for creating the strongest economy and most dynamic democracy in the world. I will complete this by developing sustainable revenue streams for public schools (PK-12), community colleges and universities to take us out of the national bottom of funding; and

3 - Increase the resources and authority of the Arizona Department of Water Resources to measure water utilization throughout the state and build regional water management teams. This would combine the Prescott AMA with the Verde Valley to bring all stake holders together to create rational solutions to protect our depleting water resources. In this way we preserve the precious quality of life we enjoy in Yavapai County.

Republicans

Ken Bennett

Age: 62

Occupation / Relevant Experience: Consultant / AZ State Senator 1999-2007

Education: B.S. Accounting – ASU

How long have you lived in this district? 51 years

What made you decided to run/re-run and what strengths can you bring to the office?

I'm running to secure our state's finances, secure our elections, and secure the border. Our state retirement systems are over $20 billion UNDER-funded. They were over 100% funded when I previously served in the Legislature. As Secretary of State, I oversaw 12 secure and successful elections. Now citizens distrust our election results and wonder if their votes were counted accurately or offset by illegal ones. The Biden Administration has totally failed to protect our border and Arizona taxpayers are paying for it in money, the loss of lives, and increased crime. We need experienced leaders to solve these problems.

What are your Top 3 goals, if elected, and what is your top priority for your constituents?

1 - Put Arizona's finances back in order. Pay down state debts, especially our retirement systems shortfall of over $20 billion. Cut unnecessary spending and reduce the tax burden on all Arizonans. Make sure the money spent by government is as efficient as possible.

2 - Make our elections transparent, trackable and publicly verified. Clean up our voter rolls and eliminate votes from illegal voters. Audit elections in 10 days, not 10 months. Require complete transparency of election systems, vote tabulation and results.

3 - Be the voice of the people in District 1 to fight for their best interests, against the government bureaucracy. Help keep government limited and as small as possible. Leave as much of the people's money in the hands of the people, who will spend it better than government does.

Steve Zipperman

Age: 69

Occupation / Relevant Experience: Retired - Real Estate Broker and Business Lawyer

Education: BS - Zoology/Chemistry; MBA; JD

How long have you lived in this district? Just under 5 years

What made you decided to run and what strengths can you bring to the office?

As a student and teacher of the Constitution, I could not sit back and watch our current elected officials take away our rights and destroy the country that I love. I was compelled to run for office for the first time. I am an Army veteran, America First Constitutional Conservative, and small businessman. My goal is to serve the people of LD1, and to give them a voice in their government. I am a strong leader, and will not compromise my conservative principles once elected. My campaign does not take money from lobbyists, and my votes are not for sale.

What are your Top 3 goals, if elected, and what is your top priority for your constituents?

I will fight to change our election laws so that every legitimate vote is counted. We must restore confidence of the American people in their election system. The 2020 Presidential Election was stolen. Free and fair elections are necessary to maintain our constitutional republic.

A strong border is necessary for us to exist as a country. I will fight for legislation to build Trump's wall, and to enforce our border with Mexico. The Arizona Rangers should be given authority to help police our Arizona borders with help of the National Guard. Arizona needs to file suit in federal court under Article 4, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution to make the federal government live up to its obligations to Arizona; to repel the invaders coming over the international border.

Parents must have a choice about where their children are educated. The public K-12 schools are not going a good job of educating our kids. Parents who don't want their children brainwashed with CRT and SEL should be able to move their kids to homeschool, charter school, or private school options, and the money must follow the child. Public schools should have to compete with private school options to get funding.