List of Redistricting Commission applicants pared down to 40

by Craig McDermott, cross-posted from Random Musings

The Commission of Appellate Court Appointments met on Monday to solicit public comment on the more than 70 applicants for the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission.

Ultimately, the leadership in the lege will choose four members (2 Ds and 2 Rs) and those four will select the fifth member, an Independent, who will serve as chair.

On Monday, the Appellate Court Appointments commission set up the process for their part in the process – they eliminated a number of applicants, mostly on the grounds that they didn't meet the legal requirements for membership on the redistricting commission (i.e. – they'd changed their party registrations within the last three years).

The list of applicants who made the "shorter list" will be interviewed at a meeting in December and a "short list" for the legislative leaders to choose from will be constituted.

The 40 who made the first cut, from Mary Jo Pitzl of the Arizona Republic (typos left unchanged, but links to the applicants' public applications added) -

The Republicans:

Jim Bruner, Scottsdale

Louis Armando De Leon, Phoenix

Scott Day Freeman, Phoenix

Christopher Mark Gleason, Tucson

Patrick McWhortor, Cave Creek

Jeffrey D. Miller, Tucson

Micahel Reddick Perry, Phoenix

Crystal A. Russell, Gilbert

Mark Edward Schnepf, Gilbert

Leslie Ann Schwalbe, Tempe

Susan Fried Shultz, Paradise Valley

Stephen J. Sossaman, Queen Creek

Richard Stertz, Tucson

Lynn Werner, Tempe

Benny E. White, Tucson

The Democrats:

Marcia J. Busching, Phoenix

Robert Lawrence Cannon, Phoenix

Frances Baker Dickman, Phoenix

Luis Armando Gonzales, Tucson

Eric Bruce Henderson, Holbrook

José Manuel Herrera, Phoenix

Michael Kuby, Tempe

Linda C. McNulty, Tucson

Lawrence Charles Mohrweis, Flagstaff

William Garfitt Roe, Tucson

Mark David Rubin, Tucson

S.L. "Si" Schoor, Tucson

Jimmie Dee Smith, Yuma

Marshall A. Worden, Tucson

The independents (not a D or an R)

Paul Bender, Phoenix

Raymond Frank Bladine, Phoenix

Doug Campos-Outcalt, Phoenix

Catherine Castle, Laveen

Adolfo P. Echeveste, Tempe

Kimber Layne Lanning, Phoenix

Coleen Coyle Mathis, Tucson

Timothy Warren Overton, Avondale

Margarita Silva, Laveen

Linda Spears, Tempe

Eliminated in the first round was David Harowitz, a Republican lawyer and Rep. Steve Yarbrough's business partner.  The business relationship alone may or may not have been enough to disqualify Harowitz, but the fact that he tried to conceal that relationship…?

Making the first cut was Paul Bender, a highly esteemed ASU law professor.  The Republicans, in the person of blogger Greg Patterson, tried to smear him as "ACLU," "liberal," and as violating the bar against members holding public office because he is involved with various tribal courts.

Of course, left out of his screed were the facts that the ACLU is non-partisan, that "liberal" is a label that doesn't denote partisan affiliation, and that the tribal courts are parts of sovereign nations and don't qualify as public offices in Arizona (state, county, municipal, etc.)

It also didn't help that even Patterson conceded that "Bender is qualified and he's a brilliant guy.  He was my Arizona Constitutional Law Professor, so I know him well. "

Note:  I don't know Bender.  I was seated behind him at the meeting.  He was sitting in the back row when I arrived a few minutes late for the meeting.  I stood against the back tables with the other late arrivals (all the seats we filled) until building staff brought in another dozen or so seats.

Even though the meeting was held in the Arizona Courts Building, roughly a quarter mile from the legislature, it was like it was in a completely different world –

The meeting actually started at the posted time, 10 a.m.

After covering the legislature for four years, I'm not used to that happening down there.  🙂

The interview meeting (and some may be conducted telephonically) is scheduled for Monday, December 6.