Nancy Schriber is the new Chairperson of the Maricopa County Democratic Party

Stating that “local politics is where we need our most coordinated efforts,” former Legislative District 28 Chairperson Nancy Schriber beat Arizona Democratic Party Vice Chair Damien Preciado to succeed Steven Slugocki as the new Chairperson of the Maricopa County Democratic Party at the 2020 Winter Convention.

Saying “she is excited to get to work,” Chairperson Schriber thanked the past board of the County Party for their hard work and looked forward to moving forward with the new team to make Maricopa County Bluer. She pledges to “listen, collaborate, and be open to new ways of thinking,” as the party looks to build on increasing voter turnout, community outreach, and fundraising.

The other members of the new Maricopa County Democratic Party Board are:

• Patti O’Neal: First Vice-Chair.
• Alejandro Larios: Second Vice-Chair.
• Jade Duran: Secretary.
• Heather Mrowiec: Treasurer.
• Redeem Robinson: Sergeant at Arms.

A resolution calling for restoring balance in the federal judiciary either by methods such as term limits or adding seats to the various courts also passed.

Chairperson Slugocki gives tearful farewell to Convention Attendees

In his last official function as County Party Chairperson, Mr. Slugocki gave the approximately 800 virtual attendees to the annual winter convention an accounting of the progress the Democratic Party has made since 2016 including:

• Surges in PC growth, fundraising, and the number of donors.
• Recruiting high-quality candidates to run for every county office.
• Helping elect statewide candidates like Mark Kelly.
• Helping to deliver Maricopa County to Joe Biden, the first time the area has voted for a Democrat since 1948.

Acknowledging that the County Party did not achieve its local electoral goals in 2020, Mr. Slugocki said that Maricopa County Democrats have “become the strongest county party in America” and the new board will be successful in building on the past gains.

At the end of his remarks as Chairperson, Mr. Slugocki was tearful when he thanked everyone (board members, candidates, executive staff, PC’s, his wife) for “making the last five years possible.”

Executive Director Maritza Miranda Saenz Calls for Prioritizing Local Candidates. 

Maricopa County Democratic Party Executive Director Maritza Miranda Saenz called for a cultural shift in the party that:

• Prioritizes local candidates and building up the bench with quality progressive candidates.
• Educates voters on the need to vote down-ballot and not just the top candidacies like President, Senator, or House Representative. The undervote in the down ballot races in 2020 killed Democratic candidacies, many of whom lost by less than one percent of the vote.
• Does a better job in reaching out to the base Latino and Black Communities in generating higher turnout in those districts. Those districts and groups should not be taken for granted.

Ms. Miranda Saenz cited the gains of Democrats in County area school boards as a positive development in building the party bench of qualified future candidates for higher office.

She also said that the ability to canvass, once reenergized after the pandemic, will help the party reach out in ways they were not able to do in 2020.

Moving Forward

Chairperson Schriber and Executive Director Miranda Saenz are right.

A trickle-up approach to winning elections is the best strategy for building a sustained Democratic-Progressive presence throughout Maricopa County.

The foundation is there and while Maricopa County candidates did not perform as expected, the strategy to promote down-ballot races, increase base and swing vote turnout for Democratic candidates (most of the ones in 2020 should be encouraged to run again if they like), and build on the fundraising successes of the last two cycles is a sound strategy for improving party prospects in 2022, 2024, and beyond.