Legislative District 18 State Representative Jennifer Jermaine has been a star for the Arizona Democratic Party in the Legislature.
A pragmatic progressive who has continually supported measures to help children, expand the middle class, fully fund education, and lift people up, she has received acclaim from both sides of the political aisle for her advocacy supporting the plight of missing, murdered, and abused indigenous peoples.
With her second term in the Arizona State House ending in 2022, Representative Jermaine has decided to take that valued experience from her time in the State Legislature and run to serve as a Justice of the Peace in the San Marcos District in Chandler, Arizona.
If elected, she pledges to bring “a fair and balanced approach” to the position, committing to “listening to all sides of a situation and then researching existing laws and regulations before making decisions.”
Representative Jermaine graciously took some time to discuss her candidacy for the San Marcos District Justice of the Peace.
The questions and her responses are below.
1) Please tell the readers at least one reason why you are leaving the Arizona State Legislature?
“I’ve accomplished a lot in the last three years with a focus on missing and indigenous people, a new missing children’s statute, and the expansion of the University of Arizona’s medical school to support continuing education for all of our Arizona based health care institutions. I’ve got a few more things I want to accomplish this session like reforms to the state victim’s compensation fund. But it also felt like the right time for me to make a change to give somebody else the opportunity to represent us at the State Legislature.”
2) Please tell the readers what are at least two reasons you are running for the San Marcos Justice of the Peace?
“Most of my work at the state legislature has been focused in the areas that this court covers in regards to contractual disputes, housing, traffic incidents, property damage, and domestic violence. I’m running for San Marcos Justice of the Peace because the people of Chandler deserve someone who can listen carefully to both sides, weigh the appropriate statutes and precedent, and make fair and balanced judgments.”
“This is the area of the law that I have been working in the last three years and it feels like a natural transition.”
3) If elected, what would be two goals you would work toward as a justice of the peace?
“The first goal is to continue my work around victim’s services and a big part of that is making sure our courts are telling victims about the existence of and eligibility for different programs in Arizona, Maricopa County, and the City of Chandler. And I also want to ensure that we are holding people responsible when they do something wrong while balancing that with restorative justice measures to make sure we are not setting people up for continual cycles in the criminal justice system.”
“I also plan to continue my personal advocacy for issues important to indigenous peoples.”
4) Is there anything not covered in the first three questions that you would like the readers to know about you or your candidacy? Please explain.
“I have a reputation at the State Legislature for working with everybody and having a fair and balanced approach. These are traits that I will carry forward as the next Justice of the Peace in the San Marcos District.”
Please click on the below links to find out more about Representative Jennifer Jermaine and her candidacy for the San Marcos Justice of the Peace.
www.facebook.com/JenniferJermaineAZ
www.instagram.com/JenniferJermaineAZ
Discover more from Blog for Arizona
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Even though I am an admirer of Ms.Jermaine’s efforts in the legislature, her candidacy for JP just follows in a long line of ex legislators, ex supervisors, and retired cops who all run for JP seats. The entire JP system in Arizona needs to be abolished and replaced with a district court system, with well qualified and licensed attorneys serving as misdemeanor judges.