When Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer lost his re-election bid in the Republican primary on July 30, many in Arizona were surprised. But the Democrat running to replace him was not. 

Tim Stringham, who ran unopposed in the Democratic primary for recorder, stayed mostly in the background while three Republicans duked it out and gave varying opinions on whether previous elections in the state had been stolen. But after Richer’s loss to state Rep. Justin Heap, R-Mesa, a groundswell of support emerged for Stringham as elected officials, candidates and voters reacted to the toppling of an important figure in Arizona elections. 

“The people that were the most surprised about what happened in the primary were the people who were paid to know what would happen in the primary,” Stringham said. 

Since taking over the Recorder’s Office in 2021, Richer fought against a sea of conspiracy theories related to the 2020 presidential and 2022 midterm elections. Heap, who could be his successor, has not answered questions about whether he believes those elections were stolen or interfered with. He is running on a platform that describes elections in Maricopa County as a “laughing stock” and has promised to undo many of Richer’s efforts.

A veteran with a law degree, Stringham said he only jumped into the race as a “firewall” against more right-wing candidates like Heap. 

Stringham served in the U.S. Army before heading to law school at the University of Notre Dame. He went from law school to the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General’s Corps, where he served on active duty as an attorney practicing international and military operational law.

After the military, Stringham returned to his home state of Arizona and began working in veterans’ advocacy, which is how he learned about the recorder’s race. 

Stringham said his campaign for recorder is partially motivated by his military service.

“I took an oath to the Constitution in the United States,” Stringham said. “This little segue in my life for the next four years is about trying to honor that oath.”

Stringham said he only considered running for recorder after realizing that Democrats in Maricopa County were convinced Richer was unbeatable. Eventually he was recruited to run by the county Democratic Party Executive Director Jon Ryder, but said party members were still sure Richer would win.

“[I thought] ‘the Republican incumbent probably isn’t going to win his bid in the Republican primary,’” Stringham said. “So why is it they can’t find anybody? Why would you find me off the street? Why isn’t there some aspiring politician?’ The answer that we kept getting from people over and over was that Stephen Richer was raising so much money he wasn’t beatable.”

According to the most recent campaign finance reports, Richer had nearly $200,000 in cash on hand ahead of the July 30 primary and had raised nearly $500,000 during the election cycle. Heap had around $81,000 in cash before the primary and has raised around $182,000 since his campaign began. 

Richer also had an incumbent advantage and received a fair amount of national media attention throughout his tenure, making him a well-known name not just in Maricopa County but across the state. Heap and Stringham have far less name recognition to lean on in the November general election. 

Stringham said he met with Richer last year to let him know he would be running as a Democratic challenger. While he respects Richer and the job he has done, Stringham said the meeting solidified for him the need for a contingency plan.

“I think [Richer] knew that this would be an uphill battle, but I left very unconvinced … that he actually had a viable path in the Republican primary,” Stringham said.

Democrats are now coming out in full force for Stringham, who saw his social media following and campaign donations skyrocket overnight. Tony Cani, a Democratic political strategist, said in a post on X that Stringham raised more than $50,000 in the day after Richer’s loss. 

Heap’s win in the primary means a Democrat has a much better chance of taking the seat, something Stringham has acknowledged.

“We knew that if Stephen Richer had won his primary, we would lose the race,” Stringham said. 

However, Stringham said this is still “an uphill race” and a win for him will require Republican supporters of Richer to vote Democrat. Arizona Republicans have been reaching across the aisle this election cycle to endorse Democrats like Kamala Harris for president and Ruben Gallego for U.S.Senate. Richer himself said he would vote for President Joe Biden before Biden stepped out of the presidential race. 

Richer garnered 129,344 votes in the primary and Stringham said he is already receiving “effusive” support from those voters.

“We have these conversations with Republicans who two, three days ago, were on Stephen Richer’s side, and we’ll talk to them and they’re like, ‘Hey, we’re so excited to support you.’” 

So far, Richer has not endorsed a replacement for himself, but Stringham said he hopes to meet with the incumbent soon to discuss it. Richer did not respond to a request for comment on his endorsement plans. 

Stringham wants voters to know that he has voted for Democrats and Republicans in the past and does not plan on making a career out of politics. He referred to his run for recorder as a “segue” and said he tells his staff he plans to buy a boat and sail around the world in four years if he makes it to the Recorder’s Office. Stringham said he might consider staying if he loves the job, but he hopes either Democrats or Republicans find someone better to replace him in 2028. 

He said he knows he’s not the most qualified person for the job, but that the current political climate is “driving good people out.”

“If the Democrats or the Republicans are in a position where they can bench me in four years and bring out somebody who really is a qualified elections official that hopefully we’ve inspired to get in, that’s my victory,” Stringham said. “That’s what I want to see.”

If Stringham is lucky, he might succumb to the Recorder’s Office “curse,” described by Richer in a post on X after his loss on July 30. Both Richer and his predecessor, Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, only served one term before losing their bids for re-election. 

Stringham said voters should take those losses as a sign that elections in the county are running as they should. 

“I hope some of them are taking a look at it and saying, ‘Well, we had two back-to-back elections officials who were accused of rigging elections and they failed to rig their own elections,’” Stringham said. “Maybe this process is a little bit safer than you thought it was.”

Heap did not immediately respond to a request for comment.