Thank You, LD9! I’m Proud to Serve You for Another Term (video)

LD9 election results for 2020

Thank you so much, LD9 voters, for making me the top vote getter in the 2020 Primary Election and the 2020 General Election. I particularly want to thank my grassroots volunteers who worked tirelessly to help me win re-election. 

It was an extremely difficult year for humankind, but you persevered to help many Democrats win– including the LD9 team of Senator Victoria Steele, Rep. Randy Friese and me. Oh, yes, and Joe Biden!

I was his target, and you helped me beat him. The final count is PPH 64,781, Rep. Randy Friese 64,772 and Brendan Lyons 48,026.  OK, I beat Friese by only nine votes, but I beat Lyons by 17,755 votes.

Big money and endorsements provided by the Chamber of Commerce, insurance company PACs, the police PAC, developers, and others who want another reliable Republican vote for privatization and tax giveaways lost to a Progressive Clean Elections candidate with a people-centered campaign, a strong voice, and an independent voting record.

I could not have done this without your grassroots support.

In the pre-COVID era, you hosted house parties, which were invaluable for meeting voters and for collecting signatures, $5 contributions for Clean Elections, and seed money. You collected signatures and $5s on your own while I was at the Capitol in early 2020.

You bundled and labeled literature. You stamped, addressed and personalized postcards. You organized events and people. You amplified my campaign messages on social media.

You helped the LD9 team distribute palm cards by doing no-contact lit drops in nearly every precinct in the district in just a few months.

You worked really hard this year for the big wins the Democratic Party achieved in 2020 — including electing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as president and vide president.

Take care of yourselves. WEAR A MASK. I’ll be looking for you on RTS in the coming session.

Arizona Daily Star Editors Interview LD9 Candidates (video)

LD9 candidates

Each election season, there is an endorsement process. Organizations, groups and causes conduct their endorsement processes differently. Some just hand out endorsements. Some require candidates to answer questions and do interviews.

Last week, the Arizona Daily Star conducted their endorsement interview with the three Legislative District 9 candidates: Democratic incumbent Reps. Randy Friese and Pamela Powers Hannley and Republican challenger Brendan Lyons. In the before times, these interviews were conducted behind closed doors with only Star personnel and candidates at the newspaper’s office. In the COVID19 era, the endorsement interview was an online forum with ~15 constituents and Star staff in the audience. Having even a handful of constituents “in the room, was a worthwhile addition. As you’ll see in the video, the people had good questions about reproductive choice, education funding and other topics.

The interview is an hour long. Pop some popcorn, pour your favorite beverage, and watch the video here. For your convenience, below are the question time stamps. (You can check out my other endorsements, honors and candidate statements here. Watch the whole collection of Star endorsement interviews here.)

Continue reading Arizona Daily Star Editors Interview LD9 Candidates (video)

Together We Can Build a Stronger Arizona for Future Generations (video)

Rep. Pam Powers Hannley

Five years ago this month, I started my first campaign to run for the Arizona House to represent Legislative District 9.*

In 2016, I ran an unabashedly progressive Clean Elections campaign based upon economic reform, equity, and public health.

I promoted raising revenue by eliminating unnecessary lawsuits, tax loopholes, sweetheart deals, and corporate tax giveaways and by creating a public bank to spur the economic development, without draining governmental coffers.

I advocated raising the minimum wage, tackling income inequality, ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, and fighting discrimination against women and other minority groups.

Lastly, I was the only person back in 2015 talking about refocusing funds from the War of Drugs to tackle the opioid epidemic and  to end criminalization of marijuana. Far too many people — mostly men of color — are warehoused in Arizona prisons because of activist county prosecuters and over-policing of marijuana possession.

I promised to be the voice of the people in the Arizona Legislature, and as a Clean Elections candidate, I have been free to speak my mind because I am not dependent upon big money donations.

Now more than ever, with the COVID19 virus creating financial and public health insecurity, Arizona needs experienced leaders who will fight for the people and not kowtow to the corporations.

The Coronavirus has revealed deep-seated inequities and widespread race, sex, and gender discrimination in our systems. Underfunded public schools, mass incarceration, voter suppression, food and housing insecurity, environmental degradation in the name of profit, healthcare deserts, medical bankruptcy, and violence against innocents– whether it be domestic violence, gun violence, domestic terrorism, or police violence — these broken systems are baked into our laws.

It’s time for reform.

It’s time for historic change in the Arizona Legislature and in Washington, DC in Nov. 2020.

It’s time to end austerity for the people and welfare for the corporations.

Giving away billions of taxpayer dollars annually was already an unsustainable path. Continuing Arizona’s carte blanche corporate and special interest tax giveaways during the COVID19 era and beyond is fiscally irresponsible. We will need funds to rebuild our state; the tax breaks have got to stop. We can’t afford them.

Arizona should be investing in future generations. We should fund the People’s To-Do List: education, roads, healthcare,
and security — not the corporate wish of tax giveaways, deregulation, privatization, and sweetheart deals.

Continue reading Together We Can Build a Stronger Arizona for Future Generations (video)

July LD9 Town Hall Focuses on Opening Up K-12 Education & COVID19 Q&A (video)

LD9 town hall

LD9’s July virtual town hall was July 23, 2020. The format was a bit different for the this town hall because the LD9 team of Senator Victoria Steele and Reps. Randy Friese and Pamela Powers Hannley shared the stage with educators Leila Counta (TUSD School Board member), Taylor Cleland, and Nathan Davis (Amphi School Board Candidate) for the first 30 minutes.

We had a rousing discussion on the safety of opening up Arizona schools during the pandemic, with presentations from the educators and comments and questions from the Legislators and participants. What is TUSD doing? What is Amphi doing? How are teachers preparing for the unknown? The education video is a bit long because it includes the three presentations, plus the Q&A session. (Pop some popcorn and watch it. It’s worth it.)

Continue reading July LD9 Town Hall Focuses on Opening Up K-12 Education & COVID19 Q&A (video)

Join the LD9 Team for a COVID19 Virtual Town Hall on April 30

LD9 Legislators

When I look at the above photo, I think to myself, “Those were the days.” I miss seeing you all, but I do enjoy hearing you on the phone and seeing you on video conferencing.

Although the LD9 team can’t meet with you at house parties and libraries, we can still meet virtually. My seatmates– Senator Victoria Steele and Rep. Randy Friese– and I have participated in many online meetings with constituent groups and other Legislators during the adjournment.

Now we are taking the leap and hosting our own online LD9 Town Hall on Thursday, April 30 at 4-5 p.m. Each of us will give a topical update related to COVID19 and then take questions. Senator Steele will address unemployment insurance, Dr. Friese will discuss the COVID19’s impact on the Arizona budget, and I will talk about the public health aspects of the pandemic (testing, contact tracing, etc.) Dr. Friese is also available to answer questions as a healthcare provider who is working in the hospital through the crisis.

Continue reading Join the LD9 Team for a COVID19 Virtual Town Hall on April 30

Parents, How’s It Going? ADE Offers Flexibility to Parents & Students (video)

Rep. Pam Powers Hannley and ADE Chief Kathy Hoffman

Parents, how are you all doing as you shelter in place in your homes with your children? I’d like to hear your stories.

I know that many of you led busy lives before the novel Coronavirus hit our state. You were probably rushing here and there… dropping off children at school or day care, driving to work, going to the store, going out to eat, watching a soccer game at the park, taking vacations, but now you’re home with each other. You may have work-at-home obligations, while at the same time you’re trying to help your children with their schoolwork.

So, how are you doing? How are your children doing? I have talked with many moms in the past week. They seem a bit stressed out with all of the things they are now juggling, on top of what they were juggling already. Their experiences with the schools has been mixed, but after all, the teachers and schools were also thrown into this. You don’t just set up an online learning curriculum with the snap of your fingers.

On Wednesday, the Arizona House Democrats had our weekly update phone call. This week our special guest was Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman, (She and I are pictured here at the 2019 Arizona Public Health Association Conference, where she was honored as public official of the year.) We are lucky to have this woman heading up our educational system. She’s smart, and she has heart.

A few days earlier, she and Governor Doug Ducey announced that Arizona schools would be closed for the rest of the school year. School is still going on, but the buildings will remain closed. Initially, when the two of them announced the shutdown, they said that students would go back to school after Easter.

According to Hoffman, there is quite a bit of variability across schools, school districts, and geographic areas in the state. Some schools are attempting online learning. Some students are meeting with teachers via video chat, but no all schools districts, schools, teachers or students have the technology at home to do this. It is my understanding that 50% of the students in TUSD– and an unknown number of teachers– don’t have the Internet or the hardware to access online classes. Hoffman said TUSD reported needing as many as 11,000 laptops or devices for students to attend classes remotely.  Some schools are distributing paper packets– particularly to younger students.

Some parents are getting creative with nature walks — even if they are around the backyard– and old fashioned, hands-on learning about plants, animals, the weather, gardening and the environment. One parent told me last week that her son’s school was gearing up slowly for online learning but that she has her son on a schedule. (Go, Mom!) He has to do one worksheet of math, do one hour of silent reading, write a few paragraphs, and practice his trumpet for 30 minutes. I encourage parents to engage their children with other types of learning activities like journaling, science experiments, research papers, poetry, music, cooking, gardening, handicrafts, art. Children and young adults need ways to express themselves … and ways to stay busy. Why now combine learning with self expression?

Children will learn lessons during this time. It might not be book learning, but they will have experiences they will never forget. Parents, consider having your children write a paragraph a day in a journal about their lives. It will give them a record and a personal history of this time and also give you a glimpse into what they’re thinking and feeling.

Since I have been talking with parents and educators, I was interested to hear about her expectations. Basically, seniors who are on track to graduate will graduate. All students who are performing at grade level will progress. There will be no standardized testing this year. Hoffman and the school board are “trying to be as flexible as possible” with the parents and students.

I agree with Hoffman’s approach. In this difficult time, we all need to be kind and patient with each other. This includes parents, children and educators.

March 31 is my daughter Alex’s birthday. In her honor, this video focuses on families.