District 2 race starts to take shape

First-term Supervisor Matt Heinz faces three-time candidate John Backer ... Tucson council takes aim at hookah lounges.

Pima County Supervisor Matt Heinz is trying to keep his seat in District 2 as he faces a challenge from Republican John Backer.

Heinz, a Democrat, has a built-in advantage in the race. The district is home to nearly twice as many Democrats as Republicans. But voters outside of the two major political parties account for 37% of the district’s electorate.

The candidates have to persuade a diverse mix of voters, including residents of Tucson’s downtown area, people living around Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, and voters in Sahuarita.

Heinz unseated longtime Supervisor Ramón Valadez in the 2020 Democratic primary and then handily beat Republican Anthony Sizer in the general election. He didn’t have a Democratic primary challenger this year.

Heinz also served two terms in the Legislature, an experience he often cites at supervisor meetings, as he did during budget talks this spring when the county was faced with cuts to state-shared revenue.

He is a physician and spent much of his first term using his medical expertise to help guide the county through the pandemic. He also advocates for the county to play a bigger role in resolving the housing crisis, such as trying to persuade his colleagues on the board to add millions of dollars to the county’s housing fund.

Backer works in the tech industry, primarily as an analyst for law enforcement. He also is a licensed real estate agent. This is his third attempt to win a supervisor’s seat, after coming up short in 2016 and 2020 in District 4.

Unlike Heinz, Backer had a rival in the primary this year, where he outpaced Beatrice Cory Stephens.

He wants the county to “squeeze the life out of every tax dollar” and says public safety is the “sacred responsibility” of any level of government. He’d also prioritize roads and parks, he told the Tucson Metro Chamber.

Backer was endorsed by Sahuarita Mayor Tom Murphy, Sahuarita Town Council members Bill Bracco and Diane Priolo, and the Arizona Conference of Police and Sheriffs.

So far, relatively little money is flowing into this race. Backer has $4,400 in campaign cash on hand, while Heinz has $9,000. Heinz’s biggest donation was $6,600 from Scott Stace, CEO of Bluespan. He also got $2,500 from a political action committee listed as “SWG” without an address.

Voters won’t have to wait long to learn more about Backer and Heinz. They’re slated to answer questions next Tuesday at a candidate forum. The League of Women Voters of Greater Tucson is hosting the forum at the Eckstrom Columbus Library.

Ideas on the table: Arizona Daily Star columnist Tim Steller digs into the violence around certain local hookah lounges, which is on the agenda for the Tucson City Council’s September 25 meeting. Councilwoman Karin Uhlich, who asked for the agenda item, says the council could explore rule changes for hours of operation, regulating the lounges as entertainment venues, or stricter parking requirements.

Fool me once: The City of Tucson put a new policy in place after former President Donald Trump and presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders failed to pay their bills for venue costs and security provided by the city for 2016 campaign events, KGUN’s Eddie Celaya reports. This time around, the Trump campaign put up a $145,000 deposit for tomorrow’s rally at the Linda Ronstadt Music Hall.

Thumbs up: Every judge in Arizona who will be on the November ballot meets state standards, Capitol Media Services’ Howard Fischer reports. That includes 16 judges in Pima County. The judges are appointed by governors, who pick from lists provided by panels, and voters choose whether to retain them.

Call to the public: Tucson officials are asking for public input on the People, Communities, and Homes Investment Plan, which sets up the city’s priorities for the next five years for housing, social services, education, and other issues. You can fill out their feedback survey here until September 24.

Federal help: A neighborhood near Davis-Monthan Air Force base is getting a $500,000 federal grant to fund community-led projects, Arizona Public Media’s Hannah Cree reports. The area included in the “29th Street Thrive Zone” has been struggling with poverty for many years and the funds are meant to help improve housing, workforce, health and education for residents, including refugees from East Africa and Afghanistan.

Water payments: The City of Tucson plans to leave 30,000 acre-feet of water in Lake Mead next year, and get $12 million from the federal government in exchange, KOLD’s Bud Foster reports. This is the third year in a row city officials left some of their water allocation in the lake under an arrangement where the city gets $400 per acre-foot.

1 million: The square footage of a new industrial project near Tucson International Airport, the Star’s Gabriela Rico reports.