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Republican
Candidate for Arizona House in Legislative District 8
Phone: (520) 723-0327
Email: tj@tjshope2012.com
Website: www.tjshope2012.com
Twitter: @TeeJShope
1206 N Reeves Rd, Coolidge, AZ 85128.
Age: 26. (08/12/85, Florence, AZ).
Arizona since:.
Occupation: Manager, Shope’s IGA Supermarket, since 2008; driver, ASU Disability Resource Center, 2007-2008; deputy director of communications, AZ Republican Party, 2006..
Religious preference: Roman Catholic.
Education: B.S., political science, ASU, 2008; A.A., general studies, Central Arizona College, 2005; Coolidge High School, 2003.
Political experience: VP, Coolidge Unified School Dist Governing Bd since 2008; precinct committeeman, Pinal County Republican Committee since 2003; second vice chair, Pinal County Republican Committee, 2009-2011; state chairman, AZ Federation of College Republicans, 2007-2008; CD 1 member-at-large, AZ Republican Party Executive Committee, 2007-2009; president, College Republicans at ASU, 2006-2007; president, Central Arizona College Republican Club, 2003-2005.
Memberships: Coolidge Chamber of Commerce, Knights of Columbus.
Interests: Watching sports, playing golf, and listening to various types of music but mainly country. I also enjoy reading both political and sports related books and am an avid viewer of the History Channel.
Political influence: My parents have been very influential in my political development and knowing that my father is serving his eighth term as Mayor of Coolidge is inspirational to me. As far as partisan politics, however, I would say former Pinal County Republican Chair Sharron Gil, who provided me with the knowledge of how hard I would have to work within the party apparatus to accomplish things. She opened many doors for me and made sure I knew that I would have to work hard to make an impression.
Job creation measures: We must continue to ensure that Arizona has a competitive tax structure. Great strides have been made by the Legislature and governor over the last couple of years, but we know that other states are making themselves more attractive as well so we must always keep a keen eye on setting ourselves up to be the most attractive western state in which to do business. We must also continue toward a path of regulatory reform so that when new businesses set up in Arizona, they won’t have layers of bureaucracy to deal with.
Top Issues: Education and transportation issues are very important not just to the state as a whole, but specifically to the district I will represent. I look forward to tackling issues such as school finance reform, working to ensure school choice, and continuing work on school district unification issues. As a member of a school board, I take education issues very seriously and will look forward to working on them at the Legislature. In transportation, we must ensure that infrastructure catches up to the growth seen in LD8 over the past years and into the future.
Prop 100 sales tax extension: I oppose extending the 1% sales tax. We need to keep the promise that was made to the voters of this state that it would be a “temporary” fix.
Illegal immigration: Illegal immigration continues to be a problem as well as drug smuggling into our state. We must work with law enforcement to make sure that the tools needed to keep drugs and dangerous cartels out of our state are readily available. SB1070 was a fine addition to the books, but we must now work with officials across the state to enforce it and other immigration measurers that have already been passed.
Background & experience: Coming from a political family showed me that this is a very important commitment to the State of Arizona and to LD8. I also know that for myself and anybody who comes from an active family has to work even harder than anybody else so you can show that you are your own person both in thoughts and action. Serving on a school board is often one of the toughest positions to serve in, and I know that it has served me well to prepare for this endeavor.
Pro-life / pro-choice: As a practicing Roman Catholic, I am proudly pro-life.
One last thing: I want the voters of LD8 to know that I will work very hard for them and will always have an open door policy regarding their issues and concerns. Arizona is a great state and our greatest days are ahead of us. I look forward to representing a district that is all inclusive of the Five C’s of copper, cotton, cattle, citrus, and climate. I look forward to earning your vote!
Campaign finance: private.
