Rep. Bill Konopnicki, R-5, says there are only two ways to run a campaign: unopposed or scared, and he’s running scared in his campaign for one of the few legislative seats that could change hands Nov. 2.

He said he knows he probably will be targeted by conservative Republicans for helping lead a group of 16 Republicans who voted in May for a budget his leadership opposed.

The race, three candidates for two seats, pits Mr. Konopnicki against long-time legislator Sen. Jack Brown, D-5, who was termed out of the Senate, and Sylvia Tenney Allen, a former Konopnicki campaign volunteer in her first political race.

Because of his 30 years of service in the Legislature, spanning five decades, many consider Mr. Brown, including one of his opponents, to be a shoo-in.

“I think it’s impossible [to beat him],” Mr. Konopnicki said. “I would be shocked if he lost.”

Mr. Konopnicki said the race boils down to him and Ms. Allen.

Mr. Brown, however, said he is not assured of being re-elected.

“The lady that’s running is running a real tough campaign,” he said. “She’s got $43,000 to spend from Clean Elections; I’ve got a quarter [of] that amount.”

Ms. Allen is running a publicly funded campaign. As of Sept. 27, the last day accounted for in the most recent campaign finance report filed with the secretary of state, she had raised $45,400.48, of which $42,340 was from Clean Elections. The filing shows she had $9,735.67 remaining at the end of the reporting period.

“I’m not willing or able to sell my ranch for the job,” Mr. Brown said.

He had raised $14,180 as of Sept. 27, with $9,516.52 on hand at the end of the reporting period. He is running with private funds.

Mr. Konopnicki, who also is running with private funds, had not filed the post-primary campaign finance report at press time.

Running Against An Icon

Ms. Allen said she holds out hope that two Republicans can get elected from the district, in which Democrats outnumber Republicans 44.9 per cent to 37.4 per cent (nearly all the rest are unaffiliated), but she said it is a challenge to mount a campaign against an icon of the region like Mr. Brown.

“It’s very difficult, for sure, because he has name recognition and people have been used to voting for him for 30 years,” she said.

Republicans had an opportunity early in the campaign, Ms. Allen said, to take both seats, but that was damaged when House Speaker Jake Flake, a Republican who is running for the Senate in District 5, spoke out in support of Mr. Brown and Mr. Konopnicki for the House seats. [Arizona Capitol Times, Aug. 20 issue, page 3]

At the time, Mr. Flake said the two lawmakers were his “seat mates” and said he tried to discourage Ms. Allen from running, telling her “the positions were filled.”

“I had thought at the beginning that there would be a very good chance that two Republicans could take the seat,” she said. “United Republicans would have had a better chance.”

Mr. Brown, she said, should not even be running because he reached his term limit in the Senate. Though the law allows him to run for the other chamber, Ms. Allen said it is against the spirit of the law.

“I think it’s time for him to retire,” she said. “He should have stepped down.”

Mr. Brown said his decision to run for a House seat was above-board and Ms. Allen is singling him out unfairly. He pointed out that Mr. Flake and Pete Rios, D-23, are switching to the Senate and House, respectively, after reaching their term limits.

“It’s legal,” Mr. Brown said, adding, “She doesn’t mention Jake or these others.”

Term limits, he said, need to be modified because they take power away from legislators and give it to staff and lobbyists by forcing lawmakers with institutional knowledge to leave after eight years.

Despite the belief that Mr. Brown will win election, Ms. Allen said her campaign focus is not on Mr. Konopnicki. She said she is trying to raise voter awareness of Mr. Brown’s voting record, which she said does not fit with the area, which though heavily Democratic is conservative on public policy.

“I really feel like our area is quite conservative,” Ms. Allen said. “Even the Democrats are quite conservative.”

Mr. Brown denies his voting record has been in opposition to the district’s wishes and says he is not a “big spender” or a “liberal.”

“I’m a guy that knows you have to spend money on education, community colleges, people that are downtrodden,” he said. “I guess I’m kind of compassionate and she works it out to be that I’m the big spender.”

A group of conservative Phoenix-area Republicans is planning to work in the district to help Ms. Allen get elected.

The PAChyderm Coalition will conduct polls and organize volunteers to support Ms. Allen, Phil Mason, the group’s chairman, said. The group, he said, is backing Ms. Allen because she is a conservative Republican.

“Our goal is to get Sylvia elected, and we do have some problems with the voting record of the other two people,” Mr. Mason said. “Our goal is not to get Sylvia and Jack in, it’s not to get Sylvia and Bill in, it’s to get Sylvia in.”

All of the candidates agree the district needs adequate access to a variety of public services, including health care and education.

District Covers 5 Counties

District 5 is one of the larger districts in the state, covering all or parts of five counties: Apache, Gila, Graham, Greenlee and Pinal.

High-quality health care and access to it is something the candidates say their rural district needs.

Ms. Allen said the Legislature needs to work to equalize the cost of medical service for those on Medicare and AHCCCS across the board. Everyone’s tax dollars go to support the program, Ms. Allen said, so everyone should be able to benefit from it.

Mr. Brown said rural areas across the state do not have enough doctors, leading to a higher cost for services.

“It’s just a whole different ballgame out here than in the metropolitan areas,” he said.

Mr. Konopnicki said re-establishing full funding for community colleges is especially important in the district. The community colleges in the district — Eastern Arizona College in Thatcher, Northland Pioneer College has five campuses and Gila Community College has three campuses — are the only places where residents can get a college education, he said.

“The other big issue, I guess, goes without saying,” Mr. Konopnicki said. “No tax increase.” —