It was certainly the political surprise of the year thus far when, on Jan. 24, Don Bivens walked into the Wyndam Hotel in downtown Phoenix as the unchallenged head of the Arizona Democratic Party, and walked out as just another member.
Whether called an ambush, a revolt or the inevitable result of the party’s disappointing performance in the 2008 legislative races, Bivens’s ouster was, by all accounts, a spontaneous uprising among the rank-and-file, who have been grumbling, in private or openly, about the opportunities — and money — wasted in a campaign that predicted Democratic pick-ups in the Arizona House and Senate and then yielded the opposite.
It began when Paul Eckerstrom, who previously headed the Pima County Democratic Party and served as a deputy attorney general, made the spur-of-the-moment decision to throw his hat into the ring.
“I decided to run about two hours ago,” he said at noon — two hours after the meeting began.
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."
Throughout the morning he appeared before the party’s various caucuses, announcing his candidacy and making his case to his fellow Democrats. By noon, hundreds of those Democrats were sporting opposition campaign paraphernalia — white stickers, hastily printed and shaped like “Hello, My Name Is” tags, that simply displayed the name “Eckerstrom.” The buzz regarding the insurgent campaign grew as the realization sunk in that the surprise challenger had a good shot at pulling off the upset.
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 an effort to sell the room on another two years of his leadership, Bivens pleaded that he needed more time
“(The Arizona Democratic Party) is more like a battleship than a PT boat,” he said. “It turns rather slowly.”
In stark contrast, Eckerstrom, whose speech was unpolished but impassioned, 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.
It was perhaps former state House Minority Leader Phil Lopes, though, when seconding Eckerstrom’s nomination, who most fully embodied the dissatisfaction that seemed to permeate the meeting.
“I’ve spent too damn much of my working life with Republicans,” said Lopes. “I want that to change. I need that to change.”
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."
At a few days’ remove, some in the new state leadership were feeling upbeat about the prospects of an Eckerstrom administration.
Ruben Gallego, chief of staff to Phoenix Councilman Michael Nowakowski and also a newly-elected vice chairman, was not a vocal supporter of Eckerstrom at the meeting. Still, he expressed optimism for his party moving toward 2010.
“While it was a surprise to everyone, we are certain that we will continue to have a strong, vibrant Democratic Party,” Gallego said.
Vince Rabago, who, like Eckerstrom, chaired the Pima Democrats and was also elected as a vice chairman, was more sanguine about the new leadership.
“Paul Eckerstrom has tremendous political acumen and will be a passionate advocate for the Democratic Party and the entire state,” Rabago said.