Don Bivens (shown) was defeated by Paul Eckerstrom in the race for state Democratic Party chairman.

In a stunning upset, former Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Paul Eckerstrom has wrested control of the Arizona Democratic Party away from former chairman Don Bivens.

Going into the Jan. 24 state party convention, Bivens stood unopposed, and the fireworks were expected to be at the Republican convention across town. Yet state GOP Chairman Randy Pullen successfully staved off a challenge from opponent Lisa James earlier in the day to retains his position, while Bivens was unseated by a challenger who decided that morning to run against him.

Eckerstrom's surprise candidacy seized on widespread discontent among state Democrats over the party's failure to win seats in the 2008 legislative races. He said before the vote that he had "no idea" if he had a chance of winning. Though he has formerly served as a deputy attorney general in Arizona and had campaigned actively for both former Gov. Janet Napolitano and President Barack Obama, he said he didn't know if his credentials and the dissatisfaction among the party rank-and-file would be enough to carry the day.

However, Eckerstrom said he was compelled to run by what he called one-sided news coverage of Arizona's budget crisis, laying the blame at Napolitano's feet.

"What threw me over the edge was that I just got back from the inauguration, and I saw the state is going one way, the country's going in the other."

"The news media has been speaking with one voice," he continued, "saying 'This is Janet, this is her fault.' The one person who should be standing up to them (Bivens) wasn't there."

Prior to the nominations and voting, Bivens had laid out his strategy for how Arizona Democrats should proceed toward 2010, when there will be gubernatorial and Senate races in addition to contests for seats in the Legislature and U.S. House.

The centerpiece of Bivens' plan was the convening of a panel to review the positive and negative attributes of the 2008 campaign, which he announced would be finished by April.

"It will be the seed crystal for a coordinated campaign effort," Bivens said.

He also said success in the future will hinge heavily on the efforts of Democrats to adjust voter mobilization to suit the increasing popularity of vote-by-mail, and to campaign in every district in the state, "no matter how red."

Attorney General Terry Goddard, the state's highest-ranking Democrat and a likely candidate for governor in 2010, officially nominated Bivens, saying victory for Democrats in 2010 depends on Bivens leading the state party. However, it was a harbinger of things to come when Bivens received only tepid applause when accepting the nomination.

In stark contrast, Eckerstrom, whose speech was unpolished but empassioned, was greeted with encouraging hoots and hollers when he rose to address the room.

Though one of the main planks of his platform raised quite a few eyebrows – trying to convince Arizonans to approve tax increases for education – he also received a partial standing ovation when he wrapped up, and the wild cheers of approval went on for at least a minute.

When the votes were counted, though, the margin in his favor was decisive. Out of 569 ballots cast, Eckerstrom took 324 votes to Bivens's 255.

Many saw the result as being more unfavorable to Arizona Democratic Party Executive Director Maria Weeg, who many blame for the failure to parlay a whopping money advantage over state Republicans into pickups in the Legislature. Several precinct committeemen present opined that if Bivens had fired Weeg, he might have been able to spare himself defeat.

One supporter of that notion was Sandra Kennedy, who was one of two Democrats elected to the Arizona Corporation Commission in 2008 and the person who nominated Eckerstrom.

"I look at my seat in particular, and the party didn't help me at all," Kennedy said. "There have been problems at the party – getting through to staff, things like that."

"If Don Bivens had said, 'Hey, we made mistakes,' if he'd said, 'Maria, you've got to go,' he might have saved himself," Kennedy said. "Unfortunately it had to happen this way."

Emily DeRose, spokeswoman for the Arizona Democratic Party, said she hadn't heard any such recriminations, and did not know of any staff changes that were being discussed.

Democrats also elected officials to the following positions:

• First Vice Chair: Harriet Young of Coconino County
• Senior Vice Chair: Ken Smith of Navajo County
• Vice Chairwomen: Bree Boehlke of Maricopa County; Jo Kelleher of Yavapai County and Mohur Sidhwa of Pima County
• Vice Chairmen: Matt Capalby of Coconino County; Ruben Gallego of Maricopa County and Vince Rabago of Pima County
• Secretary: Lois Pfau of Maricopa County
• Treasurer: Rick McGuire of Maricopa County
• Education Coordinator: Anne Greenberg of Maricopa County

Affirmative Action Coordinator: Gerald Richard of Maricopa County