As a music teacher in an elementary school in north Phoenix, freshman Rep. Jackie Thrasher may have the necessary skills to get by in the Legislature. After all, she says, there’s a history of childish behavior among lawmakers. “Some of the things I’ve seen, it’s like teaching my fourth-graders,” she says.
Thrasher, a Democrat, won a hotly contested race in District 10, narrowly defeating incumbent Republican Doug Quelland and finishing slightly behind House Speaker Jim Weiers. The three candidates were separated by about 800 votes.
She spoke with Arizona Capitol Times on Jan. 17 about her first impressions of life at the Capitol and what she hopes to see in the upcoming session.
How has the first week and a half of session gone for you≠
It’s been a variety of emotions. I was so impressed being sworn in by Sandra Day O’Connor, and all of the pomp and circumstance of the first day, the swearing in. That was really exciting. I’d have to say starting off like that was good. Everything has been great. I’ve had really great help from all of the assistants and people on both sides of the aisle. Everybody’s just been great — I’ve been very impressed with people’s willingness to help and show me the ropes.
Is it what you expected≠
So far, yeah, I think so. Some of the interesting twists and turns — for example the committee reassignments and some of the other issues that have been brought up — I think are all part of us getting to know each other and getting this new session started.
It took you a couple of tries to get here — what was the difference, do you think, between your campaign last year and the ones in 2002 and 2004≠
Well, in 2002, I was brand new and I really didn’t know the system. Along the way, I learned a lot and I think I established some groundwork for the coming years. I didn’t expect to win in 2002.
In 2004, I did more walking, more grassroots activity, and I think that’s what really helped boost my percentages. I lost by less than two percent in 2004.
[Last] year, it was specific targeting of people that I thought I could persuade to vote for me, and I walked and walked and walked, and I also put together a small army of volunteers that walked for me. I think that made all the difference in the world.
I know the Arizona Democratic Party pumped a lot of effort and money into getting you elected this year. How much of an impact did that have on your campaign≠
I think that there were some volunteers that came [from the party], but mostly I think it was the teachers. It was the Arizona Education Association that put it out there that I was running for the third time and all indicators showed that it was pretty possible that I could pick up the seat. I think the efforts that the teachers and the support professionals gave to my campaign really boosted it.
Of course, the party — you don’t know those things, what the party is doing, because of Clean Elections, so I didn’t really know what was happening until much later. But I think the name ID and the issues — comparing and contrasting the incumbents and how they voted versus what I intended to do — did help.
It was a tight race. I think, really, it was the boots on the ground, basically. My walking as much as I could and meeting as many people as I could, I think, really made the biggest difference.
When you do a post mortem on the race and you look at the differences among you and Doug Quelland, who you defeated, and your seatmate, Speaker Jim Weiers, what do you think it was that made voters choose you over the incumbents≠
I got great responses everywhere I went when I told them I was a teacher. I would go to people’s doors and say, ‘I’m a teacher, and I’m running for the Legislature. I’m concerned about our children in public education.’ That rang true for everybody I talked to. In my district, they want to see improvements in public education and they were thrilled to see a teacher running. So, I’m hoping that, based on the response I got, that that was one of the things that did it for them.
Another issue that had come up from folks is immigration, and there were a couple of bills that were put forward last session. That was a big thing for people, that they were concerned about employer sanctions, and that’s what I said I supported. There were several bills that were put forth that the governor vetoed or I felt that were put forth to embarrass the governor, and some people felt the incumbents just weren’t working and weren’t doing whatever the state could do for immigration. I think they liked what I had to say about it.
Even though Speaker Weiers spent about $200,000 on his re-election campaign, the race was still very close among the three of you, with the three of you separated by about 800 votes. What does that tell you about the voters in your district≠
It’s impressive, to me, because I think they were paying attention to the issues, and that’s what my campaign literature was all about. It was about the issues and comparing and contrasting the incumbents and their voting record, versus what I believe. I really think that the people were paying attention to the issues.
I also think that — at least, it’s my belief — that the response to the negative campaigning [against me] didn’t work. There was just a flurry of activity that last week, where I must have received, myself, a dozen mailers. They were very negative and kind of unsubstantiated, and I think that turns people off. I think what we saw was people didn’t like them attacking a teacher, which is what it kind of turned out to be in some people’s perspective. I stuck to the issues the entire time and talked about their voting record.
What I really believe is we raised the level in District 10 over the last three [elections], to where they are paying attention to what the issues are. I think they wanted a change, too.
If the Legislature could only accomplish one thing this year, what would you like that to be≠
That we prioritize our needs and use the money that we have wisely. The efficient use of the money that we have, I think, is the best thing that we can do within the prioritization of our needs.
What should some of those priorities be≠
The education funding — we have to do something about improving our rankings. Hopefully, the governor’s P20 Council will help affect the legislators that are currently serving so that they will see how important it is to invest in our kids and public education.
The teacher’s salary — the base salary [of $33,000 annually proposed by Gov. Janet Napolitano], I think that’s great. I think that’s exactly what we need to address.
I also believe, as the governor talks about transportation and infrastructure, that’s really important. Being the fastest growing [state], we’ve got to do something about our transportation issues. So, the bonding — and, luckily, I am serving on the Transportation Committee, so I am going to be hearing about this — going from 20 to 30 years is just a one-time thing, but it will infuse quite a bit of money and I think that’s a good idea. I hope to see that happen, because people are frustrated driving around town. They can’t get anywhere.
The innovation, I think is really exciting, when I look at the Executive Budget. These are things that the governor would like to do, and we mostly agree as a caucus. Just the ideas — you don’t have to raise taxes, but you can still do some great stuff with the money you have. That is exciting to me.
You touched on it a little bit earlier, but I’m guessing you were coming down here expecting the political interplay to mostly be between Republicans and Democrats, and not as much among just the Democrats, as it has been the past week or so. What’s your take on the situation≠
Again, I think it’s just a bunch of new people coming into this legislative session. There were decisions made by our leadership for specific purposes. I think there was some affront taken to that, but I think our caucus is working through that. We’ll get over it and we’ll move on, but I think any time there’s a change, some people resist change. I think that’s just something that we’re working through.
It was strategy for re-election, the placement [of freshmen legislators] on committees for specific purposes. Seating on the floor had reasons — when you have so many new people, I was thankful to be sitting on the floor next to somebody who could tell me what in the heck we were doing, because, truly, for awhile… I mean, we had the orientation session, and that was great, but I can tell you, today, I don’t remember a word that was said. Until you experience it, you really don’t know what to expect.
So far, it’s been pretty good. People on both sides of the aisle have been really helpful. The freshmen — the Republican freshmen — are an exciting group of people. Talking about what did I expect, I just figured, after the big partisan election, we’d all just give up a little bit and work together. So far, that’s what I’m seeing from these new people. Some of the older people that have been here for a while and believe that longevity’s important are struggling a little with putting new people in places on committees, but I don’t think it’s a big deal that’s going to divide us or keep us from making good progress.
Thank you very much for your time.
Thank you. I’m thrilled.
Up closer
Who is your favorite author≠ Howard Zinn, author of “People’s History of the United States: 1492 to Present”