Councilmember Duff and $157 million bond winning easily in Mesa
Mesa voters were comfortably approving a $157 million bond request for public safety and three ballot questions on how the city operate, as well as returning Councilmember Jenn Duff to office, after more the last big batch of ballots was counted Monday.
Mesa City Council was set canvass the results of its local elections on Nov. 21, but the city will have to wait until after Maricopa County officially canvasses the results.
Countywide, no more than about 14,000 miscellaneous batches of votes still remain to be counted. It's not known how many of those were in Mesa.
Mesa Mayor John Giles claimed victory for all ballot measures in a tweet Wednesday. He thanked voters for approving "investments in public safety and essential services."
Duff's lead grew over challenger Trista Guzman Glover to represent District 4, after more votes were counted on Monday. Giles declared Duff the winner and congratulated her last week.
District 4 covers central and downtown Mesa.
Duff told The Arizona Republic she's confident the results will hold. She said she'll be thrilled to continue her work into a second term.
Duff said she'll continue "the work to make Mesa a premier city to work, live and thrive."
Guzman Glover could not be immediately reached for comment.
Full election results may not be available for several days. Early results can flip as later votes are counted. The preferences of early voters, in-person Election Day voters and those who drop off their ballots at the polls all could differ.
The multimillion bond request would pay for fire stations, a renovated police headquarters and an expanded fire and police training facility. Voters considered two proposed city charter changes related to how the city negotiates with public safety employee associations and how much the city can spend without first taking it to the City Council.
If early returns hold, voters also will approve a "home rule" question, which enables the to spend its money as it sees fit. The city must secure voter approval every four years to continue the practice.
Election Day coverage: Arizona election results
District 4 runoff
Duff was leading in her bid to retain her city council seat for a second term.
Duff is a business owner who was first elected to council in 2018 and serves as vice mayor. Guzman Glover formerly served as director of the Governor's Office of Boards and Commissions.
Guzman Glover cited public safety response times among her chief concerns. Duff's top concerns were attaining high-quality housing and addressing homelessness.
Election guide: November 2022
Election results | City races | School boards | State | Governor | Ballot measures | Federal
What public safety bond would fund
The public safety bond is split into three categories:
Fire and medical: $60.4 million.
Police: $54.7 million.
Public safety: $41.9 million.
Funding for fire and medical would focus on building two new fire stations in northeast and southeast Mesa. Fire Station 205 at Greenfield and Broadway roads would be demolished and rebuilt, and the department would replace older firefighting vehicles.
Go deeper: Mesa voters to decide on $157 million public safety bond and 3 other requests
The Mesa Police Department would remodel its headquarters on Robson in downtown Mesa and allow the city to move forward on building an evidence facility next to the headquarters.
The city also would expand the public safety training facility used by police and fire at McLellan Road and 40th Street.
The bond borrowing would cost the typical Mesa homeowner about $35 a year, according to Mesa City Manager Chris Brady.
2 propositions on city operations
The proposed changes to the city charter are:
Proposition 476 would allow the city to meet and confer with sworn public safety employee associations on memorandums of understanding, or agreements that outline work issues from wages to benefits.
Proposition 477 would update what purchases must be approved by the City Council. Currently, the council must approve any purchase of materials over $25,000. The measure would allow council to change the spending limit via city ordinance rather than sending it to the voters each time they sought a change.
What home rule question is about
The home rule question — used in more than half of Arizona cities — essentially allows a city to spend the money it collects from taxes and other sources. It lets the City Council, rather than a 42-year-old state spending formula, decide what services the community needs.
In 1980, Arizona voters amended the state Constitution in an effort to keep cities' spending in check by setting spending limits that increase with population growth and inflation.
One way for a city or town to exceed the state-set spending limit is for the council to send the home rule provision, formally called an Alternative Expenditure Limitation, to voters every four years.
Mesa voters have consistently approved the request.
If voters rejected the request, more than $800 million of Mesa’s budget could not be spent, Brady said.
Check back for the latest Mesa election results.
Reporter Maritza Dominguez covers Mesa/Gilbert and can be reached at maritza.dominguez@arizonarepublic.com or 480-271-0646. Follow her on Twitter @maritzacdom.
If this story mattered to you, please support our work. Subscribe to azcentral.com today.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Mesa mayor declares win for $157M bond and Councilmember Duff
