Key Points:

• About 16 candidates under the age of 30 are running for the Arizona House or Senate

• Candidates say they want to offer a younger perspective to better represent today’s challenges

• A state senator said it’s a risk people have to take and balance how they can support themselves and their families at the same time

The slate of candidates vying for a seat in the Arizona Legislature has a small but eager population of people under the age of 30.

At least 16 candidates fit that category, along with a few more under the age of 35, and they’re eager to bring a fresh perspective to the Senate and the House. 

The average age of the Arizona Senate is about 57.6 years, while the House is just a bit younger at 51. The average age of Republicans is 56, while Democrats clock in at 49. 

But age doesn’t always equate to maturity, said Sen. Flavio Bravo, D-Phoenix. Bravo was first elected to the House when he was 28, then appointed to the Senate. Now, he’s 31 and running for re-election. As someone who entered politics as a candidate under the age of 30, he said his experience has met his expectations. 

“As a high school student, I think I was very optimistic about the idea of government and policymaking, and then when I actually visited the state Capitol, I was gravely disappointed,” he said.

He got involved in civic engagement during high school and college, and even as politics became more divisive and someone told him it would be like high school, with cliques, clubs and groups, Bravo didn’t shy away from it. 

Overall, Bravo wouldn’t describe his experience as bad, adding that he’d like to see more young people get involved regardless of the risks.

“My wife always told me this. It’s the best time to take risks in your life,” he said. “When you’re even a little bit older, I think you become more careful and fearful of impacting or damaging any stability that you have.”

Timing isn’t really even the hardest part, but it’s the question of stability, he said. Some legislators have the financial ability to work at the Legislature as their only day job, especially if they’ve retired. But with a legislative salary of $24,000, young legislators like Bravo must often go back to a full-time job when the session ends or the chambers take extended breaks. 

Like Bravo, the 16 candidates under the age of 30 want the same chance at political office. Three spoke to the Arizona Capitol Times about their interest in running for state government. 

Brendan Trachsel, 25, is running for a House seat in Legislative District 6, challenging three Democrats, including incumbent Rep. Mae Peshlakai, D-Cameron. 

Trachsel is a member of the Green Party and also a Quaker. He mostly grew up in San Diego, but moved back to Arizona in 2019 to attend Northern Arizona University, where he’s about to earn his master’s degree in counseling and student affairs. With a degree in hand, he’s headed for a full-time job at NAU. He rents in Flagstaff. 

A do-it-yourself kind of guy, Trachsel said the current political discourse didn’t address the values and topics that were important to him and other young people.

“There’s no better way to ensure that your values and views are represented than doing it yourself, particularly when you start losing faith in the two-party system and just aren’t seeing anything too productive coming out of state government,” he said. 

As one of three Green Party candidates, Trachsel said the letter next to your name should be the one that closest reflects your values. He said he shares a lot of ideas with the Democratic Party, but also works Independents and Republicans on other topics as well. 

“When it comes to the actual party leadership themselves, there are things that they seem to always go against me and a lot of people on, particularly when it comes to money and politics and the role that it has,” he said. “Two options isn’t enough to truly capture the diversity of political beliefs in our system.”

If elected, Trachsel wants to work on topics that he calls the five paths to dignity, including labor rights, education, environment, democracy and privacy. 

Trachsel said his generation has watched the government try to protect people and improve the quality of life, but they’ve seen things slip in the other direction. 

“At the end of the day, we still have this vision and belief that government has the ability and maybe even the obligation to work to improve the lives of everyone that it oversees, and that if our current systems are not doing so, then it’s time for us to step up and let the new guard fill in,” he said. 

The easiest part of campaigning so far has been face-to-face interactions and finding opportunities to make connections and ask people what’s on their minds. The hardest part has been trying to get endorsements from organizations. 

When he’s not campaigning or getting ready to graduate and start a full-time job, Trachsel enjoys soap-making, hiking and hanging out with his friends and significant other. 

Danielle Skranak, 30, is a Republican running for a House seat in Legislative District 2. She’s challenging incumbent Rep. Justin Wilmeth, R-Phoenix, in the Republican primary. 

Skranak calls Gilbert home and earned her bachelors of science in criminal justice at Arizona State University and has worked as a paralegal for 10 years, recently starting her own business. She rents a house in Phoenix. Skranak served in the Army as military police and a correctional officer at Fort Leavenworth prison. 

Running for office wasn’t quite on her to-do list, but she was noticed through her work with nonprofit organizations that advocate for veterans and active duty military members. The Arizona Veteran Leadership Council approached her with the idea to run for office. 

“They thought that I had a great resume and a good fortitude to want to be able to make change in my community, which is very true. I grew up here and I’m noticing a significant shift in which our state is heading,” she said. 

Her platform includes addressing education needs, public safety and supporting small businesses. 

Running for government at the age of 30 offers a view that differs from many current legislators, and while she doesn’t disregard the wisdom of incumbent lawmakers, she said their life experiences are different. 

“I am paying a significant amount more in rents that the older legislators are just not aware of. They’re more established in their career. They have higher pay. Maybe they’re retired already,” she said, “and so they have this additional time to be able to run a campaign and pass bills and meet with constituents and lawmakers.” 

It’s harder for younger people to thrive, she said, adding the difference between the salaries in Phoenix versus the housing market is way too significant to ignore. If she was able to buy a house instead of renting, she’d be able to lower her living expenses and pour that money into her business while also having a home to invest in, instead of getting a letter of good credit for the next rental place. 

“I think there’s just a lot of different things that the younger candidates can offer that the older ones just can’t. They’re trying to fix a problem, I think a majority of the time that they’ve never experienced before, which makes things a lot tougher,” Skranak said.

The easiest part, she said, is harnessing her own energy into meeting people, talking with lawmakers, policymakers, campaign managers, constituents and knocking on doors, she said. The hardest part has been the learning curve that comes along elections, politics and government.

“This is a playing field like no other,” she said. 

When she’s not working as a paralegal or campaigning, Skranak spends time with her German shepherd, Zovina. They hike together and visit Lake Bartlett where Zovina loves to swim. On any given weekend, Skranak may also be found riding her Harley Davidson motorcycle with friends. 

“I just randomly bought a brand new Harley right off the showroom floor and learned how to ride,” she said. She’s been riding for about three years. “We have a great riding community here in Phoenix. They’re the best people in the world.”

Eric Stafford, 28, is a Democrat running for state senator in LD 29, challenging incumbent Sen. Janae Shamp, R-Surprise. He calls Goodyear home and has worked as an aviation mechanic, veterinary technician and medical assisting. He rents. 

He received his first taste of politics working on U.S. Senator Mark Kelly’s campaign as a field organizer, and he also spent time at the Legislature as a constituent. 

“Just being kind of disenchanted by the fact that a lot of these people who are dictating policy are not doing so seemingly to help us, but for their own personal interests,” he said. “I think it’s just antithetical to what politics should be. I want to see politicians working for us and making our lives easier and not passing ridiculous bills anymore.” 

His platform includes education, addressing how politicians are supported and getting dark money out of politics, and affordability. 

Stafford said young people have more to lose than others who are at the end of their careers or retired. 

“A motto that I like to think of is making policy and doing things for those that come after us, and the previous generation of politicians have not set us up for success,” he said. “Young people like us don’t have great prospects for the future, so we need to do something now before it’s too late.”

The easiest part of campaigning is talking to voters and hearing their stories and the hardest part involves running the campaign, which just about amounts to operating a business, he said. 

When he’s not campaigning or focusing on his career as a medical assistant, Stafford does woodworking, focuses on his health and is learning to play the trumpet.