Sen. Paula Aboud announces congressional bid for CD 2

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Sen. Paula Aboud (D-LD 28) announced today that she is running for Congress in the new CD 2. "Aboud first announced her plans via a recorded phone message to voters Sunday night in which she invited them to participate in a telephone town hall she has set for Monday night at 7 p.m."

Well, I know that I never received any phone message and I am on everyone's list. If you want to know where this town hall is you are on your own.

The Arizona Daily Star reports Aboud announces run for Congress:

Aboud will not be running in the special election in the existing Congressional District 8, but rather in the regular election in what will be CD2. The new district includes eastern Pima County and all of Cochise County.

She has endorsed Ron Barber, Giffords’ former district director, in the special election, which will be held on June 12.

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Aboud said she considered running the special election but waited for Giffords to choose her replacement. When Barber announced last week he was running in the special election with Giffords’ backing, Aboud threw her support behind Barber and set her sights on the Democratic primary in August.

She is the second Democrat to announce for the CD2 general election. State Rep. Matt Heinz, a Tucson doctor, is the other candidate. Barber has not ruled out running again.

If Barber does seek re-election in the fall, “We’ll just wait and see how it all shakes out,” Aboud said.

The Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) Aboud kick starts CD2 campaign with $50K – Arizona Capitol Times:

In a campaign announcement, Aboud vowed to continue Giffords’ legacy in Congress and fight for the middle class. She emphasized her advocacy against payday lenders and against flat tax proposals in the Legislature, which she opposed with a series of town halls last year.

“Too many Arizonans still need jobs. Our middle class is being squeezed. And our public debate is too full of disrespect and bickering. There’s not enough focus on the real problems we Arizonans face,” Aboud said in a campaign video. “While Arizona’s Republicans were pushing a flat income tax that helps millionaires while raising taxes on the middle class, I’ve been meeting with people from across Arizona talking about how important tax fairness is to giving middle class Arizonans a fair shake.”

Aboud said she hasn’t decided yet whether she’ll resign from the Senate.

Financially, the campaign is off to a good start. Aboud said she put $50,000 into an account for her campaign last week and has raised more since then. She would not say whether the $50,000 was self-funded or raised from outside contributors.

UPDATE: Announcement video.