Change Looms at Pima Community College Governing Board as Incumbents Secure Wins in Local Districts

Pima Community College is set to undergo significant changes as two incumbent board members were ousted in recent elections. In District 5, Karla Morales, currently vice president at the Arizona Technology Council, secured 60 percent of the votes against incumbent Luis Lopez Gonzales. Meanwhile, in District 3, Kristen Randall, a former constable and current air quality manager for Pima County, won with 57 percent, defeating incumbent Maria De La Luz Garcia.

District 1 saw Nicole Barraza run unopposed for a two-year term, filling the position vacated by Wade McLean, who did not seek re-election after his appointment following Catherine Ripley’s resignation last year. Pima County completed the vote count for the November 5 election on November 17, and the Board of Supervisors is expected to finalize the election canvass on November 21.

In local school board races, incumbents performed well. In the Tucson Unified School District, Natalie Luna Rose (26 percent), Sadie Shaw (22 percent), and Ravi Shah (20 percent) retained their seats against challengers Pilar Acosta Ruiz (17 percent) and Esteban Flores (15 percent). The Vail Unified School District saw incumbents Allison Pratt (25 percent), Chris King (23 percent), and Callie Tippett (22 percent) triumph over challengers Laura Moore (19 percent) and John Mothershead (11 percent).

Over in the Tanque Verde Unified School District, Jeffrey Neff (29 percent), Anne Velosa (26 percent), and Jeremy Schalk (23 percent) overcame challenger Christy Brent (22 percent). Similar outcomes were observed in the Marana Unified School District, where Cathie Raymond (21 percent), newcomer Roy Alexander (21 percent), and incumbent Hunter Holt (20 percent) won three available seats, edging out former incumbent David Willard (20 percent) by just ten votes, a margin that does not allow for a recount per state law.

Additionally, an impressive 54 percent of Marana voters backed Prop. 411, a budget override proposal. In Flowing Wells Unified School District, incumbents Stephanie Miller (30 percent), Wendy Effing (26 percent), and Kevin Daily (24 percent) successfully defeated challenger Joseph Delgado (21 percent). In the Catalina Foothills Unified School District, Jacquelyn Davoli (33 percent) and Tom Logue (30 percent) secured two seats against Jennifer Repscher (20 percent) and Bart Pemberton (17 percent), while appointed incumbent Eileen Jackson won a third seat with 73 percent of the vote over Brook Arispe’s 27 percent.

In the Sahuarita Unified School District, Amy Petersmarck (24 percent) and incumbents Tony Bruno (24 percent) and Denise D. Reis (22 percent) prevailed against challengers Kathryn Zanin (19 percent) and Debra Fettig (12 percent). The Amphitheater School District election was rendered noncompetitive as there were only three candidates for three seats; notable support for Prop. 412 and Prop. 413 was evident, with 56 percent and 55 percent of voters approving these respective bond and budget measures.