The Arizona Primary made easy
To serve the Mesa Community College community, the Mesa Legend has created this abbreviated voting guide tailored to Maricopa residents to simplify the in-person voting process for new or unaware voters.
General Information:
The August primary election determines which candidates get to represent which political party in the general election in November. At the federal, state and county levels, they do not determine who takes office, only who will compete in November with support of their registered political party. All city positions are finalized based on this primary, and will not be up for general election again in the fall.
To vote in this election, you must have already registered as either a Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, or an Independent. If you are registered for a party, you must vote within your party. If you are an Independent, you may pick your ballot at the time of voting.
You are required to bring proof of identification or voter ID to your polling location. Proof of identification requirements can be found here. https://azsos.gov/elections/voting-election
Positions:
Maricopa voters will decide on candidates for positions within four tiers of government: federal, state, county and city. Every position up for election in this primary is listed below. Job descriptions and specific office responsibilities can be found here: www.azcleanelections.gov/civics.
Federal:
- United States Senator
- U.S. Representative in Congress Dist. 9
State:
- State Senator
- State Representative
- Corporation Commissioner
County:
- Board of Supervisors
- County Assessor
- County Attorney
- County Recorder
- County School Superintendent
- Sheriff
- County Treasurer
City:
- Mayor
- Councilmember for District 3
Candidate Information:
For your specific state and federal candidate information, enter your address in the link here:
https://www.azcleanelections.gov/arizona-elections/find-my-candidates
The Arizona secretary of state offers a more detailed view of state and federal candidates here: https://apps.arizona.vote/electioninfo/elections/2020-primary-election/legislative/2441/17/0
Maricopa County candidate descriptions can be found here: https://www.azcounties.org/275/Maricopa-County.
City of Mesa mayoral candidate web pages can be found here:
Verl Farnsworth – https://verlformayor.com/
John Giles – https://www.johngilesformayor.com/
Polling locations:
You are allowed to place your vote at a polling location of your choice. A full list of locations are available by entering your address at https://recorder.maricopa.gov/pollingplace/.
The Mesa Community College Southern and Dobson campus is an official voting location for the August 4 primary elections.
To see sample ballots for your specific registered political party, fill out this form on the Maricopa County Recorder’s website, then click on one of the party options on the next page. https://recorder.maricopa.gov/earlyvotingballot/whatsonmyballot.aspx/
Note: The city has utilized early access to voting centers and mail in ballots since July 8 in an attempt to reduce crowding on primary day.
Safety:
Mesa Legend staff visited the on-campus voting location early August 3 to visually inspect the area. Poll workers wore gloves and face shields, and required voters to use hand sanitizer and wear gloves before entering the facility.
“We’ve taken every precaution we can think of to protect everybody from the virus,” said Michael R. Mcafee, the site’s election poll inspector. “It would have been much better to vote by mail earlier, but that’s too late now. Just come on in if you need to vote, and we will get you in and out real quick.”
After the vote:
Recent changes in law allow the County up to 20 days following the election to provide final results. Results will be aired on Mesa Channel 11 and listed on official city websites such as www.recorder.maricopa.gov, as well as covered in future articles by Legend staff.
