Joe Arpaio was elected to his fifth term as Maricopa County sheriff on Nov. 4, and now both he and his fervent competitor and rival Dan Saban are declaring victory — and drawing odd comparisons to legendary figures.
Pulling 55 percent of more than 1.06 million votes cast for a county sheriff candidate, Arpaio claimed triumph over what he said were numerous opponents, including the media. The feisty sheriff said his approving boss is the electorate, not any “unelected bureaucrat or politicians.”
“The secret weapon is, I depend on the people,” Arpaio said, adding that his unrelenting stance on illegal immigration fuels his opposition. “I don’t ask for endorsements, people ask me for endorsements.”
And by the account of his campaign manager, Jason Rose, Arpaio is a figure who has eclipsed legendary Arizona icon and lawman Wyatt Earp.
“Arpaio will go down as the greatest law enforcement official in Arizona’s history,” Rose said.
But Saban, a former police chief for the city of Buckeye, is not conceding defeat yet. He said he realizes the fight is over, but he is waiting for a total vote count to allow his campaign volunteers to get a full understanding of their impact.
And the impact, he said, has been tremendous victory.
Saban is proud to note he received almost 450,000 votes, and, like Rose, he views the contest in historic terms by likening his underdog battle to that of Scottish independence fighter William Wallace taking on the British Empire.
He called the vote total a “profound statement,” given Arpaio’s branded name recognition, authority and vastly superior campaign war chest. Saban said his $160,000 low-budget campaign against Arpaio amounted to a “mission accomplished” scenario.
And Saban, who seems far from preparing a congratulatory concession speech, instead accused the sheriff of corruption and a litany of other abuses.
“He may have won the election, but I won the awareness battle,” he said, calling Arpaio an “embarrassment” to law enforcement. “You can’t be this bad for this long without people noticing.”
Like many opponents of Arpaio, Saban criticizes the sheriff for racking up enormous legal bills defending the office from avoidable lawsuits, allegedly engaging in racial profiling during neighborhood sweeps designed to arrest illegal immigrants and operating a growingly dangerous jail system.
Arpaio disregarded the accusations, saying: “They criticize me when I go to the toilet.” The public has recognized the numerous lawsuits filed against the Sheriff’s Office are “phony,” said Arpaio, also calling the criticism the “nature of the job.”
And the sheriff is quick to minimize what Saban has billed a pyrrhic victory, stating his contender likely benefited from high voter turnout for Democratic President-elect Barack Obama and resulting down-ticket party-line votes.
“The bottom line is you’re supposed to win,” Arpaio said. “That’s what counts: winning. He’s in this because of a personal vendetta against me.”
County voter-registration figures put Democrats at a sizable disadvantage as their Republican opposition boasts significantly greater numbers.
According to the most recent figures released by the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office, 692,000 residents were registered Republicans, compared to 544,000 Democrats. The county also has 483,000 registered independents.
While Arpaio promised to immediately resume his immigration sweeps that have angered community activists and officials such as Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, Gov. Janet Napolitano and Mesa Police Chief George Gascon, Saban made his own promise.
“He’ll be legendary as a drain to taxpayers,” he said. “He is going to take a fall.”
Arpaio also pledges to run again for office in 2012.
Libertarian candidate Chris Ash received 2.63 percent of votes for a total of 27,921. ?