“We deserve a representative who sees us, who listens to us, and who works as hard as we do.”-CD Nine Democratic Nominee Dani Sturbinsky
Paul Gosar is many things.
A public servant who serves the people in his district, as evidenced by his votes to cut assistance to rural hospitals and food security programs, is not one of them.
Navy Veteran Dani Sterbinsky says she is and wants the people of Arizona Congressional District Nine to look at the record of Mr. Gosar and compare it to the goals she has in choosing her to be their next House Representative.
A nominee who believes in the American Dream and knows the financial struggles the people in her district are going through because she and her family have gone through them as well, she will, if elected, fight for an affordability agenda that lifts everyone in CD Nine up.
Operations Specialist Sterbinsky graciously interviewed with Blog for Arizona to discuss her campaign to defeat Mr. Gosar in the upcoming November elections.
The questions and her responses are below.
Please tell the readers two reasons why you’d like to run for the Arizona House in District Nine.
“My name is Dani Sterbinsky. I’m a Navy veteran and a working mom who lives here in Arizona’s 9th District. The reason I’m running is because hard work should still mean something. It should lead to a stable life, and public service should mean serving the public. I think that we deserve a representative who listens to us, who hears us, and who works as hard as we do, and that’s what I’m planning to do for Arizona’s 9th District.”
Please tell the readers in CD Nine what are at least two reasons why you would be a better representative for them than Mr. Gosar.
“First and foremost, I look at this role as public service, and serving the public means showing up for them, rolling up your sleeves and doing the work that needs to be done to ensure their voices are brought to Washington. That means working beside them and never leading above them.”
“So first, I’ll show up. Second, what makes me different is that I’m a unifier. I build teams.
That’s a little bit of my background. I bring people together to solve problems instead of dividing them, and I think that we need more of that in Washington.”
Several well-qualified Democrats and independent candidates have interviewed with me and Blog for Arizona over the last eight years and said they had the qualifications and means to defeat Mr. Gosar. Many of them also had the endorsements of Mr. Gosar’s family, who aren’t supporting him. Please tell the readers at least two reasons where you will succeed where they did not.
“First, we need to recognize that this is a very Republican-leaning district, and that 2026 is the best year or the best chance that we’re going to have to flip this seat. Regardless of qualifications, this race is about capitalizing on the failing approval rating of the Republican Party and the Trump administration, for which Paul Gosar is a rubber stamp. I also think that having a person in the race who cares less about party affiliation and more about how we can improve Arizonans’ lives is essential to this race.”
What are at least three issues that you will run on in the general election?
“First and foremost, cost of living, affordability, lowering the cost of housing, health care, and child care, empowering people to take ownership of their government. We’re a government that is of, for, and by the people, and a lot of people feel right now that their voices don’t matter. So one aspect of this campaign is empowering them to get out there, use their voice, and vote. Lastly, country living, representing rural Arizona and ensuring that we have water security and investment for their future and not allowing their zip code to dictate their access.”
What about rural hospitals and rural broadband?
“Expanding rural broadband is a huge passion of mine. I think that it is as necessary as electricity is in our day and age. So that means ensuring that every dollar of funding that we may have been awarded through BEAD grants comes to rural Arizona. That broadband goes to our schools, our public schools, and our libraries and our businesses.”
“And Medicaid, you mentioned cuts to hospitals. One aspect of that is to get into Congress and ensure that those ACA subsidies come back so that we can afford to fund those rural hospitals that are at risk of closing since those have expired.”
As you’re aware, Mr. Trump and some of his allies who want to pass the SAVE Act or curtail mail-in voting. Some studies I’ve heard recently show that the many voters that will be impacted by this are in fact some of his own supporters in rural communities.
What can you say to them to tell them you will protect their right to vote and how they do vote?
“Eighty percent of Arizonans vote by mail, and I think it’s important to ensure that we still have that access, that regardless of your zip code, you still have the ability to use your voice and mail in your ballot. I oppose the SAVE Act because I see it as a poll tax. So if we want these documents that are required for someone to re-register to vote, then we need to talk about making access to those documents free.”
Please tell the readers how you will campaign to win over independent and moderate Republican voters in CD Nine.
“I’m not a Washington elite. I am one of us. I’m currently on my lunch break working my full-time day job. I live the same reality that all of our neighbors in Arizona’s Ninth District live, and I want to emphasize that I’m going there for us to take our reality to Washington.
So we’re going to appeal to what matters to most of the people that I’ve talked to in this district, and that is the economy, making it easier for us to get by, ensuring that one stable job is enough for us to live a dignified life, and just getting the the political fighting out of politics that so many people are exhausted by.”
Please explain at least two ways your campaign will reach out and appeal to voters who normally do not pay attention to politics or current events. It’s more revealing in the district you’re running in because, like I said, Mr. Gosar’s family members have not endorsed him, and that message doesn’t seem to get through to people.
“Yes, his family has come out against him and said that he’s not fit for office, and that does seem to turn some people off.”
“Well, we’re going to go everywhere, listen to everyone, and we’re writing no one off, and that means we’re going to have a strong ground game. We need to knock on a lot of doors, and we’re going to go there with the idea that we want to listen. What affects your life? I’m not going to come tell you what I think we can do better.
I want to know what you think we could do better. So I think that’s going to be our focus.”
Is there anything not covered in the first six questions that you would like the readers to know about you and your candidacy for the House seat in CD9? Please explain.
“I think that it’s important to know that I have a stake in our future. A lot of our politicians right now may not see the fruition of the bills that they pass right now, meaning they’re not going to see the consequences or even the benefits of what they are passing. My daughter, I’m raising her in this district. I care about my future, her future, and all of our family’s futures in this district. One thing that I do want to highlight is that we’re going to go to Washington. We’re going to make sure that Arizona’s Ninth District isn’t written off any longer. A lot of people that I speak to in this district, especially in rural areas. They feel that they’re forgotten and that they don’t have a voice. So we’re going everywhere, talking to everyone, writing no one off, and we’re going to go there and challenge Representative Gosar publicly. And I would love for people to help out in any way that they can.”
If they want to learn more or get involved, knock on doors, or contribute to this campaign, they can learn more at strbinskyforcongress.com.”
Please click here to find out more about Dani Sturbinsky and her candidacy for the Arizona CD Nine House Seat.
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