Who is on Tempe City Council? What to know about members
Tempe's current City Council is "the most diverse City Council in Maricopa County and perhaps in the Southwest," according to former Tempe Mayor Neil Giuliano.
Last election cycle, residents voted-in the first Asian and black female officials in Tempe's 150-year history, for example. And just two years earlier they elected the city's first Native American council member and first black mayor.
Along with the youngest council member to be elected in Tempe's history, it's first openly gay female to hold office, and an influential city official of Hispanic heritage ― all of whom have been served multiple terms ― the six council members represent just about every major racial and social demographic group in Tempe.
Each of them serve four-year terms and are chosen in citywide contests, rather than in district-specific races. The city's elections are staggered, meaning half of them go up for reelection every two years, with the last election taking place in 2022 and the next coming up in 2024.
The uniquely diverse council has taken the reigns of one of Arizona's most influential cities at a critical time, when multi-billion-dollar development deals are on the table, homelessness is an ongoing problem, and Tempe citizens are in dire need of new and effective affordable housing solutions.
Here are the people Tempe residents are counting on to steer their city in the right direction.
Vice Mayor Jennifer Adams
Adams is the is the city’s first openly gay female council member and a veteran of Tempe’s city government, having served nearly 30 years as a staffer in departments ranging from human services to public works. She won her City Council seat in 2018, shortly after she retired from her day job, and was reelected for a second term last year.
The two-term official will be up for reelection again in 2026.
Joel Navarro
Navarro is the only Hispanic council member in Tempe and longest-serving official on the city's governing body, with roughly 15 years under his belt as an elected leader. He has worked as a paramedic with the Phoenix Fire Department since 1995 and is currently the deputy chief of special operations within the PFD.
Navarro will be up for his fourth reelection in 2024.
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Randy Keating
Keating was first elected in 2016 when he was 33, making him one of the youngest City Council members in Arizona at the time. He's a small business owner and avid community volunteer, which won him Tempe’s MLK Diversity Award before he became a council member.
He will be up for his second reelection next year.
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Doreen Garlid
Garlid became Tempe’s first Native American City Council member when she was elected in 2020. She is a member of the Navajo Nation and has spent her career working with community organizations throughout Tempe, ranging from the Newtown Community Development Corporation to the Tempe Impacts Education Foundation.
Garlid's current term will end in 2024.
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Arlene Chin
Chin became the city's first Asian council member when she was the top vote-getter last July. She has held a wide variety of positions at ASU, including as the assistant director at the W.P. Carey School of Business’ China MBA Program.
One of the most recently elected council members, Chin will be eligible for reelection in 2026.
Berdetta Hodge
Hodge won her City Council position for the first time in July 2022 alongside Chin. She is the first black female to secure an elected office in Tempe’s local government and has spent her career in education, including as the president of the Tempe Union High School District Governing Board
She will be up for reelection in 2026.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Who is on Tempe City Council? What to know about members
