Joe Arpaio battles current mayor, 1 other in Fountain Hills mayoral election

Fountain Hills voters will decide who will lead their town as mayor during this upcoming election, a choice that’s likely to have a significant impact on how the town approaches everything from funding services to growth and development to civil discourse over the next two years.

The Fountain Hills mayoral contest involves three individuals well-known in the local political scene:

• Ginny Dickey, 68, is the incumbent who was first elected Fountain Hills mayor in 2018 and re-elected in 2020 and 2022. Dickey was an Arizona Senate staffer, part-time teacher, bookkeeper, school board member and assistant director of the Department of Environmental Quality.

• Joseph Arpaio, 92, served as Maricopa County sheriff from 1992 to 2016. He was convicted for contempt of federal court for his sluggish progress complying with court-ordered civil rights reforms stemming from a class-action lawsuit against the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. Arpaio is running for Fountain Hills mayor for the second time, having lost to Mayor Ginny Dickey in 2022.

• Gerry Friedel, 67, currently serves on the Fountain Hills City Council. He worked nearly 22 years as a loan officer and another 17 years as a financial planner. Friedel was the only mayoral candidate who did not respond to The Arizona Republic’s questionnaire.

Arizona local elections: Read our full coverage of the Fountain Hills mayor’s race

This year’s race is the first in Fountain Hills since 2022, an election that raised eyebrows across the Valley because of the "vitriolic" and heavily partisan rhetoric, which was largely driven by a group called Reclaim Our Town, or ROT, which sought to establish a Republican majority.

ROT succeeded on that front when all three of its Town Council candidates won. They included Brenda Kalivianakis, Allen Skillicorn and Hannah Toth.

Town leadership has been embroiled in chaos. ROT unsuccessfully sued the town to oppose a controversial apartment development, prompting numerous ethics complaints and accusations of corruption by and against leaders of the tiny town.

And Skillicorn was recently found responsible for multiple ethics violations in regard to his mistreatment of town staffers. He was sanctioned and ordered not to interact with town employees without a chaperone.

This year’s race has been less messy, but ROT is still in the mix. The group has not officially endorsed any candidates, but its leader Crystal Cavanaugh has backed Friedel for mayor and three other council candidates.

The 2024 election may, to some degree, prove to be a referendum on how the sitting ROT-aligned officials have governed.

Residents will also be choosing what direction the town takes on key issues ranging from development, economic growth, funding for core services like public safety, and what each candidates’ potential impact will be on the fraught state of civil discourse in Fountain Hills.

Early voting began July 3. Voters can check on the status of their mailed-in ballot on Maricopa County’s website at https://elections.maricopa.gov/voting/voter-dashboard-login. Those who choose to vote by mail are advised to mail their ballot by July 23 or drop it off at a ballot drop-off location or voting location by July 30.

The divisive question of development in Fountain Hills

The question of whether Fountain Hill should allow at least some more development for economic growth or preserve the town as it currently is has been a burning issue in recent years.

It reached a fever pitch earlier this year when the council considered rezoning at Four Peaks Plaza, also known as the Target center, to allow for a four-story, 316-unit apartment complex to crop up on the site. The council approved it with a split 4-3 vote in January.

Opponents viewed the multi-family housing project as a burden and safety concern because of the potential tenants who might rent there, rather than buying a home in town. Others favored adding apartments to attract younger residents and enhance economic activity.

The rezoning decision prompted an attempt by ROT to get it put on the ballot, a lawsuit from the group when its petition was deemed invalid, and the slew of ethics complaints and corruption allegations that have overtaken Town Hall ever since.

Mayor Dickey was one of the four officials who voted for the rezoning. She is the most supportive of growing the local housing stock, albeit in a way that doesn’t affect the town’s “spectacular views, wildlife, and outdoor fun with hometown charm,” according to her response to The Republic's questions.

She sees it as a necessity to boost economic activity and aid small businesses in town.

“Residents feed business success, sustain a healthy school district, add to non-profit involvement and volunteerism, and provide an overall rich quality of life,” Dicky wrote for the local Fountain Hills Times newspaper’s candidate questionnaire series.

“To thrive and grow in a way that encourages and attracts a multi-generational population across a wide spectrum of experiences and interests … while enticing current residents to stay …  the town should promote a variety of housing solutions.”

Friedel voted against the Target Center rezoning and has signaled he’s content with Fountain Hills’ current housing stock, as well as its affordability.

He hasn’t indicated his stance on apartment housing, specifically. But he has discussed allowing the construction of roughly 1,500 “homes” on a chunk of Arizona State Trust Land that might be incorporated into Fountain Hills at some point in the future.

That empty 1,300 acres sits just north of Fountain Hills. In the late 2010s, officials struck a deal that would allow it to be incorporated into the town once it’s developed, but no company has been able to successfully make that development happen.

“Everyone who wants to live here should be afforded the opportunity. We still have room to grow — it is possible that the state trust land, if master planned correctly, could be a nice entry level development of approximately 1,500 homes that could fit very nicely with the town,” he told The Independent.

Firedel has also mentioned that “entry level subdivisions might be (possible on) some of the parcels of land that the school district owns,” but said factors like “infrastructure cost, timing, cost of funds, rates and more” would impact whether that pans out.

Arpaio is more hardline about increasing the housing stock, although he told The Republic that he is “pro-business, and will work closely with the Chamber of Commerce,” if elected.

The former Maricopa County sheriff characterizes Fountain Hills as a community of mostly seniors who have “worked hard to be able to (afford to) live in a community like ours,” according to his response to The Independent.

But he did add that Fountain Hills residents expect amenities like restaurants and that “those businesses require workers,” explaining that he could be grudgingly supportive of more housing to help those businesses function.

“It’s unreasonable to expect all workers to commute to Fountain Hills for service and retail jobs,” Arpaio told The Independent. “That said, there has to be some accommodations in terms of multi-family housing units. But I’m opposed, in general, to large developments.”

Civility, ethics violations and partisanism in Fountain Hills

The persistently combative behavior and rhetoric out of town officials over the past three years has made both civility and professionalism major points in this election.

Dickey’s campaign website states that she’s committed to “civility, unity, and predictable, fair governance, to ensure an equal voice and respect to all our neighbors.”

The incumbent mayor has been at the receiving end of much of the chaotic infighting that has plagued the town. Councilmember Skillicorn, for instance, leveled unsubstantiated accusations of corruption and membership in a Facebook “hate group” against Dickey.

Dickey described this election as a “crossroads” where voters will decide the tone of town government, which has been distracted by dealing with unprofessional behavior from some of its members these past two years.

“We hear about ‘disruptors’ but without good faith efforts to work together for shared, positive outcomes, blowing things up for the sake of creating chaos is not brave or commendable,” she told The Independent.

Friedel, who was endorsed by ROT’s leader, said in that same article he believes “we have more in common than differences.”

He said that “listening” is the key to improving the divisions on the council, along with following ethics rules, like those that Skillicorn has been found repeatedly violating.

“The political divide can be bridged by having leadership that listens to all, follows the rules and is respectful to all. We have a lot to be proud of in our community, and this has been accomplished by representatives from all political parties," Friedel told The Independent.

Arpaio, a staunch ally of former President Donald Trump, has accused both of his opponents of engaging in divisive behavior. Arpaio claims he is the only candidate who is not engaged in that dynamic.

“My two opponents are both running on a slate. We have the ‘Democrat’ slate: team Dickey (and Town Council candidates Peggy) McMahon, (Clayton) Corey, and (Henry) Male. And the ‘Republican’ slate: team Friedel (Gayle) Earle, (Rick) Watts, and (Matthew) Corrigan,” he told The Independent.

“I’m appalled at the vitriol both sides have already launched. It does not benefit the town, so I refuse to play the slate game,” Arpaio added in his statement to The Independent.

Who supports the Fountain Hills candidates?

Dickey received endorsements from virtually every top local official in the East Valley. They include the mayors of Paradise Valley, Mesa, Carefree, Apache Junction, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, and Scottsdale. The mayors of Phoenix and Avondale have also endorsed her.

The incumbent mayor also received the highest score of any mayoral candidate from the Fountain Hills Chamber of Commerce. The business-focused organization rated her candidacy an “A,” while both Arpaio and Friedel received “C” scores.

Dickey has raised about $28,000 for her reelection campaign. The majority, or about $17,000, came from in-state donors.

Another $9,700 of Dickey’s funds came from political committees. The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union and the Republic Services Employees Better Government PAC contributed almost all of that money.

Friedel’s endorsements include ROT leader Cavanaugh, Scottsdale REALTORS, former Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Jerry Sheridan, and Arizona Association of Industries President Nancy Russell Plencner.

The Town Council member has raised $30,000 for his mayoral campaign. The vast majority of those funds, or roughly $27,000, came from in-state contributions that were mostly made by retirees.

Arpaio told The Republic he doesn’t ask for endorsements. Councilmember Skillicorn is the only notable individual who has publicly come out for Arpaio. Skillicorn even ended his own bid for mayor once Arpaio joined the race.

Arpaio’s campaign is the best-funded on this year’s ticket, having raised nearly $67,000. Roughly $29,000 of Arpaio's funds came from in-state donations. About $37,000 of it, or 55% of the money he’s raised, came from out-of-state contributors.

Reporter Sam Kmack covers Tempe, Scottsdale and Chandler.Follow him on X @KmackSamor reach him at sam.kmack@arizonarepublic.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Fountain Hills mayoral election 2024: Meet the 3 candidates