Key Points:

• Legislative District 3 Republican precinct committeemen nominated three to potentially replace former state Rep. Joe Chaplik. 

• The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors will decide among the nominees

• All three nominees want to follow Chaplik’s footsteps as a Freedom Caucus member

Republican precinct committeemen in Legislative District 3 have suggested three candidates to fill a vacancy in the state House of Representatives left by state Rep. Joe Chaplik, including one former state senator. Now, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors must decide who it believes is best to replace the newly-resigned Republican legislator.  

Chaplik resigned on March 2 to focus on his congressional campaign in Arizona’s 1st Congressional District. He’s joining a crowded Republican primary attempting to replace U.S. Rep. David Schweikert, who is running in the Republican gubernatorial primary election. 

“This isn’t stepping away from service, it’s stepping forward and better preparing to answer the next call while ensuring that my constituents in LD3 continue to receive the dedicated representation they deserve,” Chaplik wrote in his resignation letter.

Republican precinct committeemen gathered at Dream City Church in Scottsdale the night of March 9 to nominate their three candidates. Several who were seeking a nomination have already filed statements of interest to run for the House in the district this November. They are joined by Rep. Alex Kolodin, R-Scottsdale, who is running for secretary of state. The district covers Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and other parts of the northeast valley. 

The three nominees were Data Orbital founder and pollster George Khalaf, former state Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita, and Cody Reim, a candidate in the 2024 Cave Creek Unified School District election who lost by less than 2% of votes in his seven-way race.

Nearly 300 precinct committeemen voted and all three nominees advanced after one round of voting. Each voter was allowed to pick up to three candidates on their ballot. Khalaf led all nominees with 268 votes. Ugenti-Rita got 238 and Reim got 219. 

“I’ve been able to help elect statewide conservatives, and I’ve traveled the state of Arizona using the data background that I have to encourage our folks to make sure we turn out and vote so we can ensure that we elect a conservative governor on the Ninth Floor,” Khalaf said. 

The final decision will be up to the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, a Republican-majority board that will pick one of the three candidates to send to the state Legislature for the remainder of Chaplik’s term. 

Kolodin attended the meeting and called on his precinct committeemen to send the board three conservative candidates to take “power back from the board of supervisors.” Four of the five total nominees said they would commit to being in the Freedom Caucus — an anti-establishment wing of the Republican caucus that Chaplik helped form and Kolodin still belongs to.

“I love RINO hunting,” Ugenti-Rita said. “Joe has done an incredible job, and I would absolutely lead in those footsteps and be a part of the Freedom Caucus.”

Reim said he had formally applied to join the Freedom Caucus earlier this year. Reim, a resident of Rio Verde Foothills, was heavily involved when Foothills residents were cut off from the city of Scottsdale’s water supply.

Kolodin had also requested a seatmate who could help secure water as Colorado River negotiations are currently ongoing. That was part of Reim’s main pitch to LD3 precinct committeemen.

“I’ve lived through that. I don’t want to see Arizona go through what I’ve lived through,” Reim said. “It’s imperative that we solve these issues, and it starts now.”

Jay Schlum, a former mayor of Fountain Hills and one of the candidates seeking to be appointed to office, said he could not commit to being a Freedom Caucus member but said he supports the work Chaplik and Kolodin have done at the Legislature. 

“I will work with our leadership. I am definitely a conservative,” Schlum said. “I’m not going to make any commitment because I don’t know what we’re committing to, frankly.” 

The other candidate who did not advance was Tom Walsh, a precinct committeeman in the district and retired dentist who helped campaign for President Donald Trump.