Pinal County Elections Director Geraldine (Geri) Roll quit her job, leaving the county once again without a leader on election administration.
Roll alleged that politicization of the office had created a hostile work environment left unchecked and even welcomed by County Manager Leo Lew and the Pinal County Board of Supervisors (BOS).
Roll’s quitting comes six months after she first assumed the position: last December. Less than a week prior to her resignation email, Roll provided updates on the county’s latest election administration efforts during this most recent BOS meeting. This included an upgrade to the ES&S management system for software; the rollout of electronic voter check-in and verification tablets known as Poll Pads; and the pausing of their manual tabulation exercise in order to work with the state on improving it.
On the morning of last week’s BOS meeting, Pinal County GOP Chair Belinda Rodriguez emailed the board with concerns that Roll was undertaking actions independently that she and other county GOP leaders believed would jeopardize the integrity of future elections. Rodriguez cited their exclusion from a hand count exercise in May while Pinal County Democrats were included, as well as Geri’s move to cancel a contract for GPS tracking on ballot transports.
“I’m sure Geri was a great attorney in both Maricopa and Pinal County,” wrote Rodriguez. “However, I have some reservations that her knowledge and skills can lead us to a successful election without its integrity being compromised or challenged. I am concerned that we are heading towards another botched election.”
The BOS heeded Roll’s advice and canceled the GPS tracking contract during last week’s meeting (Item 8H).
The following is Roll’s email to the county manager:
With no regrets, I quit.
When you no longer respect those you work for, it is time to leave. I have watched as you idly stood by when I was attacked. I cannot work for an individual who does not support me. The environment fostered by your team and the Board of Supervisors is toxic.
I believe the Elections Department should not be politicized. You relegate impartiality, common sense and dedicated work to irrational, extremist political party views and rhetoric. It is a far reach to see how you will deliver clean elections when you bend to a faction of the Republican party. Clearly, politics are the value this administration desires in a place where politics have no place: elections administration.
In my career, I have never been subject to the ridicule, disrespect, intimidation and attacks on my reputation and ethics that I have endured in these past months.
Really, Not Respectfully,
Geraldine Roll
Lew responded with thanks to Roll for taking on the position as long as she did.
“I want to thank Geri for her service during very challenging times and for the improvements that she identified and began to implement in the Elections Department,” stated Lew. “Although I disagree with her assessment, she has been an impactful public servant, and I wish her the best and know that she will continue to do great things in her career.”
In a December report, Roll attributed disparities between the official canvass and the recount results to administrative neglect.
“One factor underlying this disparity is that the canvass was filed prior to taking an adequate opportunity to investigate any possible anomalies we could discern from polling place returns,” said Roll.
In a January BOS meeting, Roll again admitted that the canvass was done “prematurely” and that the county “certainly” had time to address pressing questions about elections administration prior to the deadline for certification.
“Again, I believe the canvass was done prematurely[.] I think we had enough to have raised a few questions and we should have taken more steps before we canvassed,” said Roll. “No opportunity was taken to really look at those numbers carefully.”
Prior to serving as the elections director, Roll worked for ten years in the county attorney’s and public fiduciary’s offices. While a civil deputy county attorney, Roll advised the Pinal County recorder and elections offices. Prior to Pinal County, Roll worked as a deputy county attorney for the attorney’s offices in Maricopa and Graham counties, and as an assistant attorney general for the state.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Last week, the city of Tempe approved a $315,000 salary for their new city manager, Rosa Inchausti, a principal figure behind Tempe’s diversity initiatives, police reform, and COVID-19 lockdowns.
The $315,000 salary is just the low end of what Inchausti may make in the near future. Incahusti may receive an annual merit step increase of up to five percent of her salary based on her performance beginning this week, or up to $15,750.
Inchausti is a 30-year veteran of the Tempe government who began as a marriage and family counselor for the city but for the past 20 years has led on progressive reforms for the city.
Inchausti was appointed the director to the city’s first diversity program in 2002, after the city faced a discrimination lawsuit and an investigation from then-Attorney General Janet Napolitano into the town for alleged workplace discrimination. (Ten years later, Napolitano would face a discrimination lawsuit of her own while leading the Department of Homeland Security, ultimately settling on the allegations that she permitted discrimination against male staffers). The diversity program quickly became a model that other cities sought to emulate.
Four years into her tenure as Tempe’s first diversity director, Wrangler News interviewed Inchausti on her claims that her diversity work had improved employee morale. However, a follow-up audit at the time saw an increase in employees who reported witnessing or experiencing inappropriate treatment, and a coalition of residents and former employees were challenging the city council on the city’s work environment.
In 2014, Inchausti concocted Tempe’s Anti-Discrimination Ordinance.
That ordinance prohibits discrimination on sexual orientation, gender identity, familial status, military status, disability, and national origin, in addition to the traditional Civil Rights protections of race, color, religion, gender, and age. Due to Inchausti, the Diversity Office investigates complaints of alleged discrimination concerning employment, public accommodations, and housing.
In November 2021, the city added CROWN Act hairstyle protections to their Anti-Discrimination Ordinance. Meaning: employers, public accommodations, and housing providers may not discriminate against someone based on their hair texture, type, or style if “historically associated” with race.
Following her creation of the Anti-Discrimination Ordinance, the city promoted Inchausti to the Strategic Management and Diversity Director.
While serving in that directorship role, Inchausti convinced the city in March 2020 to engage in wastewater testing for the presence of COVID-19. The idea came from Inchausti’s launch of a similar testing program for opioids that began in 2018. Officials used wastewater testing to track COVID-19 hotspots and issue quarantines.
Although datasets weren’t available until 5 to 7 days after the purported carrier flushes their toilet, Tempe relied on the wastewater data to isolate communities — consequently targeting populations regardless of whether they were symptomatic or not. The city relied on over a million dollars in taxpayer funding to run the program in partnership with Arizona State University (ASU).
Inchausti was responsible for quarantining Tempe residents based on wastewater results despite the city admitting that wastewater doesn’t indicate infection, with some residents moved out of their homes and into local motels to quarantine. In a November 2020 interview with the Washington Examiner, Inchausti said she envisioned wastewater testing as a means of preemptive, forced quarantine for future pandemics.
“I think this is a game changer for public health,” said Inchausti. “I think this is how cities should be managed. The power in this is knowing where the virus is before people are showing symptoms or being tested. So, the asymptomatic is where we need to focus.”
Also in 2020, following the summer of Black Lives Matter riots prompted by the death of George Floyd, Tempe sought to “modernize” its practice of policing. In a webinar event last summer, Inchausti and Wydale Holmes, an interim director of the Innovation and Strategic Management Office, unveiled alternative law enforcement structures.
Tempe proposed an alternative, equity-focused 911 emergency response system to reduce reliance on police. Part of the alternative system includes diverting 911 calls to unarmed social services personnel responsible for mental illness and drug-related calls.
They’ve also begun deploying civilians to respond to scenes concerning vehicle accidents, non-violent animal calls, property crimes where the suspect isn’t present, forgery, theft reports, online reports, parking violations, crime prevention education, community conflict mediations, homeless assistance, drug usage, code enforcement, animal complaints, and city park nuisances.
As part of the police reform, Tempe divested funding from police into social services.
Inchausti’s department also led on the city’s “Right to Breathe” initiative, also prompted by Floyd’s death. The city’s report on the initiative euphemized the riots as “local Tempe events.” Proposals in the report focused on disparate, favorable treatment for minority communities justified as equity work, such as offering those communities exclusive financial benefits, work opportunities, internships, and trainings.
Under Inchausti, the city also achieved recognition and partnership with “What Works Cities” — an initiative funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies and led by Results For America. The former organization was created by Democratic billionaire and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The latter organization was co-founded by two former Obama administration officials: David Medina, formerly the deputy chief of staff for First Lady Michelle Obama as well as Democratic National Convention Committee deputy CEO, an AFL-CIO union legislative representative, Democratic National Committee policy director; and Michele Jolin, senior fellow for American Progress and formerly the Obama White House’s senior advisor for social innovation, as well as a member of Obama’s presidential transition team where she created the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation and their social innovation policy agenda.
In their hiring of Inchausti, the city of Tempe lauded her as the first female to take over the position of city manager.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Americans celebrating the Fourth of July are paying more than they were two years ago.
According to the 2023 American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) marketbasket survey, American families might expect to pay $67.73 for a cookout on July Fourth. This amount is three percent lower than a year ago, but around fourteen percent higher than 2021 numbers.
AFBF Chief Economist Roger Cryan weighed in on the news, saying, “The slight downward direction in the cost of a cookout doesn’t counter the dramatic increases we’ve seen over the past few years. Families are still feeling the pinch of high inflation along with other factors keeping prices high. Don’t assume farmers come out as winners from higher prices at the grocery store either. They’re price takers, not price makers, whose share of the retail food dollar is just 14%. Farmers have to pay for fuel, fertilizer and other expenses, which have all gone up in cost.”
Zippy Duvall, the President of AFBF, also issued a statement, writing, “While the increased costs are difficult and have made it more challenging for some families to put food on the table, it’s important to remember that America still has one of the most affordable food supplies in the world, which is due in part to strong farm bill programs. As we all celebrate the holiday, we encourage members of Congress to consider the contributions of the farm bill to our security and independence by ensuring a safe and abundant food supply.”
AFBF shared multiple factors that might explain the increased prices for food: “Drought conditions have increased the cost of feed and reduced the number of available cattle for the summer grilling season, driving up beef prices; higher potato prices can be attributed to poor weather leading to a drop in production, and general inflation is driving up the price of processed foods like bread.”
According to the AFBF, data for the survey was collected “from 240 stores in every state and Puerto Rico.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
A Republican Senator is working to hold the Governor’s Office accountable to its constitutional constraints in the wake of three controversial Executive Orders.
Senator Jake Hoffman, the Chairman of the Committee on Director Nominations, recently announced, with the support of fellow Republicans on his panel, that outstanding nominations from Democrat Governor Hobbs would be held from consideration, pending a meeting with the Governor’s Office. The Senator sat down with AZ Free News for an exclusive interview to discuss his thoughts and hopes for the path forward.
Hoffman first touched on the importance of all elected officials adhering to the rule of law and separation of powers, saying, “The people of Arizona are best served when our three branches of government follow the law, honor our Constitution, and refrain from partisan game playing. Instead of joining legislative Republicans in solving the real issues that impact the lives of struggling Arizona families like food prices, rent and housing affordability, and protecting the innocence of children, Katie Hobbs has chosen to abandon her oath of office with these politically-charged PR stunts in an attempt to pander to her far-Left base.”
He then moved to the necessity of Arizona Republicans acting to quell the constitutional overreach of the Democrat governor – especially with the three Executive Orders over the past week – stating: “The legislative branch has a constitutional obligation to act as a check and balance on the executive branch, especially when that executive branch grossly oversteps their authority. Hobbs’ reliance on unconstitutional executive dictates is reminiscent of the unconstitutional abuses of power by DC Democrats; however, unlike our establishment counterparts in DC, Arizona Republicans are resolved to exercise the full authority afforded to us by the Constitution in order to hold Hobbs accountable.”
When asked by AZ Free News to predict the future of this political battle, Hoffman responded, “Sadly, given the chaos and instability of Hobbs’ administration it seems unlikely that she’ll take the reasonable approach that we’ve requested. I can only expect that she’ll instead choose to continue her radical virtue signaling regardless of the significant harm it inflicts on the people of this state. No matter what route Katie Hobbs chooses, the majority in the Senate will continue to act as a check and balance to maintain sanity and stability in our state government.”
The east valley lawmaker’s leadership will be pivotal to determining how this unpredictable legislative session will proceed for the Grand Canyon State. After the governor’s Executive Order that centralized “all abortion-related prosecutions under the Attorney General to ensure differences in applications of the law by county attorneys do not restrict access to legal abortions,” Hoffman and his committee took the first real action in pushing back. Hobbs has seemingly been unfazed by the Senator’s response, signing several more Executive Orders, including two that arguably generated more controversy than the abortion document.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
Arizona’s Superintendent of Public Instruction shared a helpful announcement about a new feature for high school students seeking information about careers in the U.S. military.
In a release sent last week, the Arizona Department of Education revealed that it had “unveiled a one-stop service to help students interested in a military career get information about the U.S. armed forces.” The website – azed.gov/military – was established so that “students can get essential information about the various branches of the service.”
Superintendent Horne met with Raif, who was frustrated his school had no information on how to enlist. He contacted over 40 districts and found that over 25 had the same issue. We worked together to change that by putting all the information in one place. https://t.co/6PTZrCHTH1
— Arizona Department of Education (@azedschools) June 27, 2023
Horne, a Republican, issued a statement in conjunction with the announcement, saying, “With a historic shortfall of U.S. military recruiting goals, Arizona high schools need to do as much as possible to help students get the information they need to learn if a career in the armed services is an appropriate choice for them. Serving our country is an honorable endeavor and our nation will depend on the next generation of those who enlist or become officer candidates so that our military can continue to defend our freedoms.”
The release highlighted that “the need for this effort was presented to state schools chief Tom Horne earlier this year by Raif Byers, a now-graduated Phoenix-area high school senior who was unable to find helpful and detailed information about a military career on the websites for his high school or the district he attends. He found that many other students his age have the same problem.”
Byers added, “I was trying to learn more about a career in the Navy when I was in high school, but it was nearly impossible for me to find any information on my school district website. It’s relatively easy to learn about other types of careers, so I believe it’s just as vital for schools to make armed services information readily available to students. Unfortunately, I learned that in many districts, that’s just not the case. I’m very grateful to Superintendent Horne for creating this webpage where anyone in the state can easily learn about a career serving our country.”
According to the Arizona Department of Education, “the webpage includes links to the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, Army National Guard and Air National Guard. It also has details about the various military benefits and information for those interested in becoming officers or enlisted personnel.”
Horne’s efforts join several other similar endeavors from public officials around the state, who are very active in promoting opportunities in the U.S. Military or honoring those who serve. Recently, Glendale Mayor Jerry Weiers “partnered with local sponsors to host the Mayor’s Military Induction Ceremony” at a Phoenix-area church – with over 350 recruits!
In May, two in Arizona’s congressional delegation, Andy Biggs and Eli Crane, co-hosted a Military Service Academy Conference to give high school students more information about opportunities to learn more information about future military service and career opportunities.
Had a wonderful time speaking to constituents with @RepEliCrane at our 2023 Military Service Academy Conference today.
We had a great turnout and had many students interested in joining our armed forces.
Arizona elected officials found no shortage of material to react to from the U.S. Supreme Court’s latest term.
On Friday, the nation’s highest court released its opinion in Biden v. Nebraska, striking down the president’s student loan cancellation program. Chief Justice John Roberts authored the opinion, and he was joined by Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett.
The majority opinion stated that “the ‘economic and political significance’ of the Secretary’s action is staggering by any measure. Practically every student borrower benefits, regardless of circumstances. A budget model issued by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania estimates that the program will cost taxpayers ‘between $469 billion and $569 billion,’ depending on the total number of borrowers ultimately covered.”
State legislators were quick to respond to the momentous decision from the Supreme Court. Freshman Republican Representative Austin Smith tweeted, “Canceling student loan debt is and always will be an irresponsible and brainless ‘policy’ proposal. It deserved this fiery death at SCOTUS. Do not take out astronomically large loans for a career with a salary you will never be able to pay off.”
Cancelling student loan debt is and always will be an irresponsible and brainless “policy” proposal. It deserved this fiery death at SCOTUS.
Do not take out astronomically large loans for a career with a salary you will never be able to pay off.
Smith also parried an attack from the House Democrats Caucus, which took to Twitter to pin the decision on Republicans. This tactic didn’t sit too well with Smith, who said, “The Constitution did this. Cope and seethe.”
On the other side of the aisle, Senate Democratic Assistant Leader Juan Mendez released a statement shortly after news broke about the opinion, writing, “Today’s decision on Student Loan Relief is all the evidence we need to rule this court as corrupt. For generations this court as been playing favorites, taking sides and receiving undisclosed donations, all while Congress has been bailing out corrupt corporations, reckless Wall Street traders and forgiving PPP loans for the wealthy.”
Senator Mendez also called on President Biden to take further action, saying, “The Court’s biased decisions can not go unanswered. The President must do everything within his power to set student loan interest rates to 0%, set minimum monthly payments to $25, and revamp current repayment plans to accept volunteerism as payment.”
“But when the President acts within his powers to protect all of us from the economic fallout of borrowers not being able to survive payments during multiple global emergencies, now the Court cries foul?” -Senate Democratic Assistant Leader @mendezforazpic.twitter.com/k3QUBMVi4F
— Arizona Senate Democrats (@AZSenateDems) June 30, 2023
Earlier this year, Democrat Attorney General Kris Mayes announced that she had withdrawn the State from a lawsuit over the president’s actions on student loans, which was initiated by her predecessor, Mark Brnovich. Mayes told KTAR News that “we’re not going to be engaging in political lawsuits at the Attorney General’s Office anymore,” and that “suing the federal government over everything is not the answer and it’s not what the people of Arizona want.” The KTAR recap of the interview noted that the first-year attorney general “said the student debt lawsuit was inappropriate and unlikely to succeed.” Instead, Mayes joined a coalition of attorneys general from around the country to support a “federal proposal to create a more affordable repayment plan for student loan borrowers.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
