After primary upset, voters face stark choice in Maricopa County recorder's race

The two men vying to control key election processes in Arizona's most populous county have night-and-day approaches to the job, but they face similar challenges in their campaigns.

Republican Justin Heap, an attorney and state lawmaker, toes the line of election denialism. Democrat Tim Stringham, a veteran and Naval Reserve attorney, is running as a defender of democracy.

Both offer vague promises of voter confidence with few attainable or clear proposals to back their visions for the Maricopa County Recorder's Office. Both must compete to gain name recognition outside of their respective political bases. And both currently report little money or infrastructure to get their messages across to voters countywide — although Heap told The Republic he has "hundreds of volunteers" and the two are widely expected to post higher fundraising numbers in their next campaign finance reports, which are due to county election officials in October.

It reflects a race left in disarray after incumbent Stephen Richer lost his primary to Heap last month. Richer, who rose to national prominence defending his county's voting processes, was widely expected to win a second term in the office if he could pull through to the November ballot.







https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/09/03/maricopa-county-recorder-2024-who-are-justin-heap-timothy-stringham/74640935007/