The American Federation for Children, the nation’s voice for educational choice, celebrates a great night for candidates who support educational choice. Ten out of the 11 candidates the American Federation for children supported won their primaries, with the 11th race still too close to call. Three of the most important races include Sen. Carlyle Begay, D-Ganado, and Reps. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills and Steve Smith, R-Maricopa who all prevailed in their primary races. The results mark a continued track record by the American Federation for Children (AFC) to serve as the voice for parents who want more elected officials who support providing educational choice options for Arizona children.
“We are pleased to see Arizona parents rise up and support candidates who are champions for educational choice and common sense reform,” said Kim Martinez, communications associate for the American Federation for Children. “Sen. Begay is an education reformer and we look forward to working with him to advance educational options on Arizona’s Native American reservations. Both Kavanagh and Smith have strong school choice voting records and they successfully defeated highly-financed challengers.”
The legislative districts of Begay, Kavanagh and Smith are not considered competitive in the general election so all three candidates will likely be seated in the Senate Chamber in January.
Other notable candidates AFC successfully supported include District 13 incumbents Sen. Don Shooter and Reps. Darin Mitchell and Steve Montenegro; and newcomers Vince Leach and Mark Finchem in District 11.
In addition to supporting candidates who believe in educational choice, AFC opposed Bill Adams, an opponent of empowering parents through educational choice. Adams was defeated in his run for state representative in the 20th House District.
AFC invested significantly in independent expenditures in this year’s Arizona primary races.
“Congratulations to all of these candidates who strongly support educational choice. Arizona remains one of the most forward-thinking states when it comes to providing a variety of school choice options for families.” said Martinez. “AFC is committed to supporting legislators, regardless of their political party, who are willing to protect and improve those crucial options.”
AFC also congratulates Arizona State Treasurer and school choice champion Doug Ducey on his primary victory for office of Governor. As state treasurer, Ducey had a significant role in implementing Empowerment Scholarship Accounts for Arizona families.
The Arizona Federation for Children is a state-based affiliate of the American Federation for Children.