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No Major Issues, Few Surprises Reported In Arizona Primary Election

AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin

No major issues were reported in yesterday’s Arizona primary election despite new procedures and shuffling polling places in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Doctor Hiral Tipirneni won a four-way Democratic primary in the 6th Congressional District to take on Republican David Schweikert. He's been scarred by scandal after he violated nearly a dozen House ethics rules and was ordered to pay a fine.

In Maricopa County, Jerry Sheridan leads former Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who’s running for his old job, by about a percent. Republican Martha McSally and Democrat Mark Kelly have secured their respective nominations for U.S. Senate and are pivoting to the general election in November. McSally’s little-known opponent, Daniel McCarthy, still pulled in more than 20% of the vote.

In the 1st Congressional District, incumbent Democrat Tom O’Halleran currently leads challenger Eva Putzova by about 10,000 votes. Republican Tiffany Shedd is ahead in the Republican race. In Flagstaff’s three-way mayoral contest, Paul Deasy leads with Charlie Odegaard in second place and Jamie Whelen a couple hundred votes behind.

In the small town of Tusayan near the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, Clarinda Vail leads incumbent Craig Sanderson in the mayoral race. Vail has been a longtime opponent of a massive development project slated for the area. One-hundred-fourteen people voted in Tusayan’s election. 

Statewide voter turnout in yesterday’s primary stands at about 30 percent. According to the secretary of state’s office about half of precincts are reporting so far.

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