Leading in the Right Direction
President’s Corner
Informed, Enlightened, and Motivated
On Thursday evening we were fortunate to host three speakers. First up was Supervisor Debbie Lesko. She noted that the Board of Supervisors (BOS) has one of the largest budgets in the state as Maricopa County has 4.5 million residents and 2.5 million registered voters .Maricopa County is larger than 7 states! The BOS has a 5-member board. She explained the different roles of the Recorder’s Office and the BOS.
Per the 2026 General Election state law, the Recorder’s office handles voter registration and registration rolls. They are in charge of all mail-in voting. They send out the mail-in ballots and verify the signatures when they are returned. They are also responsible for the placement of drop boxes & handling special elections like nursing homes & provisional ballots.
The Board of Supervisors are in charge of election department recruitment, in person voting, emergency voting, picking up ballots from drop boxes, recounts, ballot adjudication, and matching all tabulations for accuracy. Both parties are responsible for checking the accuracy of tabulating machines.
Debbie told us that Republicans have 880,000 registered voters while the Democrats have 709,149 but there are 914,112 “not designated” voters. 87.4% of all registered voters cast their ballots early in the primaries and out of a total of 2,540,618 registered voters only 677,287 cast ballots. Debbie said we must get our ballots in early. She also said that in the primaries Maricopa County got 99.6% of the ballots counted in one day, and the final results were posted in 6 days. She urged us to get out to vote in the midterms and to encourage as many Republicans as possible to vote.
Matt Wingard of American Majority, the organizing arm of Conservatives headed by Ned Ryan, said their focus is on ballots not votes. They use cutting-edge technology and training to empower individuals with the most effective tools. Matt said we must “chase the ballots”, get voters to cast them early, and bank their votes! They knock on doors and pay $35 per hour to the volunteers! They start with phone calls and follow up. It takes six contacts for most people to actually vote, so follow-up is key. In these midterms their focus is on Arizona’s difficult races in CD-1 and CD-6 which are the most contested. In 2028 they will focus on the entire state of Arizona.
Johnathan Paton representing AZ Free Enterprise Club finished out the evening by explaining the propositions that are on the ballot. He detailed the Cheat Code- who is backing them and how good they are. He told us that each number had a different meaning. A “1” in front is the most important as these would be Constitutional Amendments. (ie:141). A “2” is an Initiative proposed by individuals, are extremely expensive, mostly funded by out of state groups, and are “sketchy” (none are on our ballot). A “3” is proposed by the legislature usually because Hobbs vetoed their proposals. (ie:316). Lastly a “4” is a local measure proposed by county, city, or schools. (ie:413). This was very enlightening as we finally understood the origin and significance of propositions. Our meeting educated us in three areas and we are more informed voters for it. This should energize and better equip us to speak with voters, to explain the issues, and to encourage them to vote early!
Patricia Moore
Quotes for October 2026
October - " October is the opal month of the year. It is the month of ripe, tinted melon; of pumpkin pie; of the full grain harvest." - Henry Ward Beecher
October 12 - Columbus Day - "America's history is a story of courage, perseverance, and discovery, beginning with the historic voyage of Christopher Columbus." - President
George W. Bush
October 31 - Halloween - "There is magic in the night when pumpkins glow by moonlight." - Unknown