Maricopa County Community College District: Kelli Butler keeps big lead over disgraced Randy Kaufman

Kelli Butler has kept a large lead over Randy Kaufman in the race for an open district-wide seat on the Maricopa County Community College District Governing Board.

Vote counting continues , though Butler has not lost any significant ground as votes were tallied Sunday evening.

Butler declared victory in a post to Twitter on Saturday, saying “We won!”

“I’m thrilled to have earned the support of Maricopa County’s voters for the opportunity to serve our Community Colleges,” Butler wrote. “I look forward to working with the Board to ensure our colleges remain affordable, excellent, and accessible!”

Kaufman did not respond to a request for comment on whether he was conceding the race.

One seat was on the ballot for the body that oversees operations and policy at the state’s largest community college system, which is composed of 10 colleges across Maricopa County.

The race between Butler and Kaufman gained both the local and national spotlight after Kaufman was arrested and accused of public sexual indecency in one of the district’s parking lots in October. A Maricopa County Community College District police officer saw him masturbating in his pickup truck in a parking lot of Rio Salado College in Surprise, according to a police report.

Election Day coverage: Live voting updates | Arizona election results

Kaufman said he suspended his campaign after news of his arrest became public, but his name remained on ballots, which were already printed and mailed to voters. County elections officials said they did not receive a statement of withdrawal from Kaufman.

That means Kaufman was still an active candidate for the seat. He did not respond to requests for comment about why he did not withdraw from the race and whether he would take the seat if he won.

Butler, a state legislator, said his suspending of his campaign wasn’t enough. She called for Kaufman to formally withdraw from the race.

Butler campaigned on her experience with public education, economic and workforce development policy at the state Capitol. Kaufman highlighted fiscal conservatism and small government principles, as well as stronger ties between colleges and businesses.

The two candidates previously responded to a questionnaire from The Arizona Republic outlining their priorities and differences.

New members will join board

The Maricopa County Community College District’s Governing Board is composed of five elected representatives from districts within Maricopa County and two at-large members who represent the whole county. Butler and Kaufman are running for one of those at-large seats.

Donna Davis, who works for an education nonprofit, and incumbent board President Marie Sullivan will take seats without appearing on the ballot. Their elections were canceled because they didn’t have competitors. Davis will be new to the board.

Board members oversee policy and operations for Maricopa Community Colleges as a system and for its 10 individual colleges, ranging from approving budgets and tuition to guiding decisions about enrollment and programming.

The community college district has faced enrollment and financial challenges in recent years but remains the largest system in the state, with upward of 90,000 students.

Have a story about higher education? Reach the reporter at Alison.Steinbach@arizonarepublic.com or at 602-444-4282. Follow her on Twitter @alisteinbach.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Maricopa Community Colleges: Kelli Butler leads big over Randy Kaufman