Nicholas Fontana, a Tucson criminal defense attorney who will replace former Rep. Daniel Patterson in the Arizona House of Representatives, said he switched his life-long Democratic affiliation to independent, just so he would qualify for the seat.

TUCSON a�� The Pima County Board of Supervisors has selected Tucson attorney and registered independent Nicholas Fontana to fill a vacancy in the Arizona House.

The Pima County Board of Supervisors this morning set the process in motion to appoint an independent to replace Patterson, but the majority of the appointed screening panel consists of partisan ex-lawmakers. Democrats Tom Prezelski and Victor Soltero were appointed this morning to a citizen panel to screen and nominate three nominee replacements, as was Republican Lou-Ann Preble.

Bennett today delivered bad news for southern Arizona Dems who thought they had pulled an eleventh hour magic trick yesterday. Patterson, last week decried the partisan politics at the Capitol, ditched his Dem affiliation and became an independent. That change of heart didn’t last long, as southern Arizona Democrats, including Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers, persuaded him yesterday to change his registration back to Dem so they could select a Democrat to replace him.

Southern Arizona Democrats’ hopes to have former Rep. Daniel Patterson replaced by one of their own were dashed today when the Secretary of State said the legislative seat will be filled by an independent.

Last week, Daniel Patterson ditched his Democratic Party affiliation and registered as an independent, decrying partisan politics at the Capitol.

But at some point yesterday, Patterson re-registered as a Democrat, the Pima County Recorders Office confirmed. The Pima County Democratic chairman said Patterson told him he did it before he resigned, a move that thrusts the appointment process for Patterson’s former legislative seat into uncharted territory.

After two hours of back-and-forth discussion, the House Ethics Committee today voted to recommend Rep. Daniel Patterson’s expulsion from the House of Representatives, and one committee member said to expect a full House vote on the recommendation later this afternoon.

Rep. Daniel Patterson today demanded that the House Ethics Committee give him an opportunity to testify before its members, cross-examine his accusers and address each incident of impropriety anonymously claimed against him.

Patterson said the ethics charges against him result from a group of lobbyists and lawmakers who sought a reason to have him kicked out of office, and one civil rights activist even said the Tucson lawmaker is being treated unfairly because he is white.

Rep. Daniel Patterson, the Tucson lawmaker facing ethics charges and possible expulsion from the House of Representatives, today maintained his innocence and said a scathing ethics report against him was politically motivated.

State Rep. Daniel Patterson says he will file a detailed response to a report in which investigators are recommending he be expelled from the Legislature.