Turning Point-backed candidate defeats Mesa councilmember in recall election
Mesa Councilmember Julie Spilsbury lost the Nov. 4 special recall election against Turning Point USA backed candidate Dorean Taylor, according to the unofficial election results from the City of Mesa.
Spilsbury was defeated by nearly a six point margin just a year after she was reelected with over 65% of votes to represent Mesa’s District 2. The next day, Spilsbury officially conceded to Taylor.
At Spilsbury’s watch party, she credited her Kamala Harris endorsement to the loss, but said she regrets nothing. She reiterated that she will find another way to serve Mesa.
“I feel perfectly fine with what I did, and I have no regrets,” said Spilsbury through tears in front of her crowd. “I have no idea what my future looks like, and what I have said over and over again is that I’m gonna be just fine. I’ll find another way to serve.”
Former Mesa Mayor John Giles, who was in the crowd during the watch party, was also a vocal, republican supporter of Harris during the 2024 election. He said he initially encouraged Spilsbury to run for City Council.
He said people have the right to file a recall election under a democracy. However, he said he disagrees with TPUSA’s agenda to make local government partisan.
“People are entitled to file recalls,” said Giles. But in regards to TPUSA’s public agenda, Giles said “they want to control local politics and local government. They want to radicalize local politics, and I disagree with all of that. But I certainly do agree that they have every right to do that.”
Turning Point USA organized efforts to petition for Spilsbury’s recall and to elect Taylor, their favored candidate.
Taylor said in an interview with 12 News that her first priority will be communication with District 2 voters. She said she wants to send a newsletter to District 2 immediately that outlines the district’s budget allocations and the things she needs constituents to voice their opinions on.
“I want to send a newsletter to District 2 right away,” said Taylor, “To me, communication is key.”
According to Maricopa County Elections, there are 49,612 active registered voters in Mesa’s District 2.
15,571 people voted in the special recall election, according to Ballotpedia information. 52.8% of those votes were for Taylor.
