If there’s a word to sum up the July 30 primary election, it would be quiet.
Voting was orderly. There were no major mess-ups or controversies at the polls.
We haven’t seen this vibe — with low election day drama, but also low turnout and interest — in about decade.
What does that mean?
Our opinions staff digs into the results and themes of the 2024 Arizona primary election.
Previous election coverage:
Who will Ansari answer to in Congess?
A misleading campaign waged by a shadowy cryptocurrency-backing group may have edged Yassamin Ansari ahead of Raquel Terán in the battle for a heavily Democratic Congressional District 3 seat.
But it also raises questions about who Ansari will answer to in Congress.
Ansari’s Phoenix City Council tenure is marked by progressive stances.
Let’s hope she makes good on her word to work on behalf of residents and not just use us — those of us who call this district home — as a stepping stone in her quest for political power.
— Elvia Díaz
GOP sheriff candidate gets last laugh
Jerry Sheridan’s commanding early lead in the GOP race for Maricopa County sheriff proves how little sway Joe Arpaio holds anymore.
He beat Arpaio in the 2020 primary. Then beat the man that Arpaio anointed in 2024 — Frank Milstead, a former state police director and Mesa police chief who also had strong support from establishment Republicans and police unions.
Sheridan’s tenure as Arpaio’s former second in command will no doubt come under scrutiny again in the general election, even if the two no longer have personal ties.
But, for now, Sheridan has the last laugh against his former boss.
— Abe Kwok
Richer stood up to MAGA and lost
Talk about a revenge vote: Stephen Richer, the man who stood up to election deniers, fought to protect ballots and opened the process to the public, appears to be out.
Richer is one of those rare Republicans who doesn’t fit in the MAGA world. He is likeable and has broader appeal with the rest of Arizona.
He just couldn’t get past the Trump cult, which dominates in the primaries but tends to lose in the general election where sensible people vote.
— Elvia Díaz
Kari Lake wins, but not by enough
The story of the election is Kari Lake, who didn’t deliver the numbers she needed to be considered a top tier candidate for grabbing a U.S. Senate seat.
Lake needed to win 60% of the vote to show she can unify Republicans in a way that she was unable to do in 2022, when she lost the governor’s race to Democrat Katie Hobbs.
With a large swath of the votes counted, the underfunded, hardly noticed Mark Lamb had 39% of the vote.
Lake stood at 55% on early Wednesday — a disappointing number given that she was the presumptive Republican nominee even before she announced she was running for the Senate last year and endorsed by Trump soon after.
— Laurie Roberts
What do you think of the election results? Send us a letter to the editor online or via email at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona election analysis: Ansari has some explaining to do in CD 3
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