Queen Creek City Council Member and Legislative District (LD) 12 State House CandidateJake Hoffman has been a bad boy.
His marketing firm Rally Forge has, after reporting by Cronkite News, the Washington Post, and the Stanford Internet Observatory (please see links below,) come under scrutiny for:
- Underpaying underage labor (conservative teenage activists apparently linked to Charlie Kirk’s Turning Points organization) for trolling conservative, Pro-Trump, Anti Biden, and Anti-Democratic Party leaning content.
- Creating many bogus social media accounts that were operated by the underage underpaid labor force.
- Creating a candidate for Congressional District Five, Randall Sand, that does not exist. Let us say that again. Randall Sand does not exist. I guess that explains why there was no Clean Elections Debate for that district.
Why does Donald Trump need Vladimir Putin when he has homegrown disinformation specialists who appear to exploit gullible teenagers like Jake Hoffman?
Twitter and Facebook have suspended Hoffman, his organization, and many of the accounts they sponsor.
What makes this more problematic for the people of LD 12 (an area that includes all or parts of Gilbert, San Tan, and Queen Creek) is that Mr. Hoffman was, up until recently, the second of two candidates running for the districts two State House seats.
Voters in the district are understandably queasy about voting for a person who peddles in disinformation and apparently has no compunction about ignoring the minimum wage statutes.
Kristin Clark, a local community activist with a career in finance, budgeting, and procurement, has presented herself as a viable alternative to the discredited Hoffman.
A proud wife, mother, and balloon aeronaut, Ms. Clark is running as a write-in candidate after much encouragement from community members of all political parties to do so.
She is running because the people of LD 12 “deserve a choice in who represents YOU. The two Republican candidates do not represent our whole community. Frighteningly, one of them runs both a company and a PAC that has spread disinformation about COVID-19, our elections, and sadly, our neighbors.”
If successful, Ms. Clark, as a member of the State House, would work on legislation regarding:
- Government accountability and transparency.
- Education
- Budget sustainability.
She would definitely be a better role model in the State Legislature than Mr. Hoffman.
Ms. Clark graciously took the time to discuss her candidacy.
The questions and her responses are below.
- Please tell the voters two reasons they should pick you over your opponent.
- ““Integrity. I have over a decade working at Maricopa County and Arizona State University in administration, focused on finance, budgeting, and procurement. I never have and never will show the questionable morals my opponent (Mr. Hoffman) has shown. His business claims, principals over profit as one of its values. I do not know what principles allow people to exploit minorities for personal profit, to use underage minors to spread disinformation, or to create fake political candidates to undermine elections.”
- “My professional experience in administration. I have managed millions of dollars in public funds and created the opportunities for the government to serve the people as it is meant to do. My opponent is actively anti-government. He promoted only the free market as a solution, and I know first-hand that the free market will not perform the duties the government takes on. Our community requires a strong government alongside a robust business market.”
- Please tell the voters at least two ways your opponent does not reflect the vision of LD 12.
- “Mr. Hoffman claims principles, ethics, and honesty drives his decisions. But we know that is not true when his business and personal accounts were permanently banned from Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for violating those platforms firms. We know Mr. Hoffman has been involved with unethical actions since at least 2016.”
- “ Hoffman happily accepts hundreds of thousands of dollars from out-of-state billionaires like Andrew Beal who influence our community and Arizona. His company Rally Forge has used these funds to slander government officials and make false claims about the integrity of elections and undermine efforts to abate the threat of COVID. Stanford University called his business work unauthentic and astroturfing. LD 12 needs someone who lives by their values, not someone eager to sell out to the highest bidder.”
- Please tell the voters at least three public policy issues you will advance if you are elected.
- “Accountability for Elected Officeholders. It’s essential to address these issues in a thorough and transparent manner.”
- “Education and fulfilling Article 11 of the State Constitution which provides as free and qualitative uniform public school system in K-12 and colleges/universities. I also support universal and full-day Pre-K and K.”
- “Budget sustainability of the State of Arizona. Rather than eliminating revenue sources and pushing fees and regressive taxes on those who can least afford them, Arizona must ensure we are fiscally self-reliant. Arizona relies on our fast-paced growth but without sustainable revenues, we cannot maintain a stable financial portfolio.”
- Is there anything you would like the voter to know about you or your candidacy that has not been asked in the first three questions?
“I did not enter this race for myself or self-promotion. I saw an opportunity to serve my community and I am willing to accept that responsibility. My husband and I chose to grow our family in Gilbert. We love this community and will work to ensure that this is a place where our children can thrive. If I was elected,”
The people of LD 12 now have a choice.
Do they want a candidate who would put the people first or one that will create fake ones?
Do they want a candidate that wants to be transparent and accountable or one that cloaks himself in secrecy and deceit?
Do they want a candidate that they do not need to hold their collective noses to vote for or one that does not deserve any support?
If the answer is they want a person that puts people first, is transparent and would be proud to vote for, Kristin Clark is the candidate LD 12 needs in the State House.
Write her name on the ballot and send her to the State Legislature.
For more information on Ms. Clark and her candidacy, please click on her website here, her Facebook Page here, her interview with the New Times here, and her interview on Sunday Square Off (please click on the link below.)
Please remember:
- The General Election Day is on November 3. 2020. Please see the below graphic for all-important voting dates.
- Please check your voter registration at vote.
- Register/sign up for the Permanent Early Voting List (PEVL) in Arizona or any state that allows early or absentee balloting and mail. Arizona residents can sign up at vote.
- Arizona residents, mail your General Election ballot by October 27, 2020, for the November 3, 2020 election. With recent issues with the Post Office, you should consider mailing them out by October 23, 2020, if not earlier.
- Check-in with the Secretary of State’s office where you live to verify your mail-in ballot was received, processed, verified, and counted.
- Know the voter ID requirements in your state.
- If you can, support Clean Election Candidates with a small contribution.
- Also, please remember to stay informed on all the candidates and vote for all the offices on the ballot.
- Also, remember to research all the ballot initiatives, sign to get them on the ballot if you support the measure, and vote on them as well.
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