Guest Editorial: Graham And His Allies Are Misleading Voters

By Raoul Zubia

In an August 7th op-ed on this very website, Barry Graham attacked me over a $5,000 contribution from Axon President Josh Isner. The claim was that I said I hadn’t received contributions from Axon in a June 29th forum, and then two days later I received a donation from Mr. Isner. Yesterday, a new piece from a Graham supporter surfaced with the same line of attack. As has become a new custom in this campaign, I’m taking the time to dispel the misinformation spread by a desperate opposition that knows it’s out of step with most voters.

Here are the facts. At the June 29 candidate forum, I said:

“Nobody has contacted me from Axon, I’ve never reached out to Axon, and I think you’ll see in my financials that there’s nothing that says Axon on it.”

Two days later, on July 1, Mr. Isner made a disclosed $5,000 contribution to my campaign.

I’m still trying to understand the “gotcha.” The contribution happened after the statement Barry is quoting. Those two facts do not contradict each other.

My statement was also clear about Axon itself. I had not been contacted by the company and had not reached out to the company. A subsequent contribution from an individual who works there does not change that, no matter how much my opponents may want it to.

The same goes for independent expenditures. Candidates do not control, solicit, authorize, or coordinate spending by outside PACs supporting or opposing their campaign. Candidates do not get to choose who independently spends money in their races. Sure, I could rail against the NICO PAC spending against me as much as Barry obsesses about groups spending against him, but that’s not productive, and voters don’t care. They want leaders who will put them first.

Moving on to another false assertion, I have never blamed Scottsdale residents for the Axon dispute, despite what Barry Graham and his keyboard warriors claim. I never supported circumventing the referendum process, unlike Barry Graham. My comments have always focused on what happened legislatively, which was that Barry Graham deliberately worked to keep Scottsdale residents silenced and hamstrung their ability to hold an election, all while the state legislature circumvented local control with a one-size-fits-all measure. Barry Graham is directly responsible for Scottsdale voters not getting to vote on the Axon issue, and I wish they had been given the opportunity.

More broadly, my position on development is not complicated. Scottsdale has grown, and my views have evolved over the last four years. I believe growth should be managed responsibly. I do not believe Scottsdale should undermine its long-term water security simply to discourage future development. That kind of thinking is deeply flawed.

That means I will sometimes agree with developers and sometimes oppose them. The same should be true of any councilmember, and I think most residents know that.

Barry surely knows. During his 2022 campaign, while presenting himself as strongly anti-development, he accepted significant contributions from people in the real estate and development industry. At one point, Barry hauled in over $20,000 in campaign contributions from real estate development executives. That pattern continues today in this race. I don’t support everything Axon does, just like Barry doesn’t support everything his donors do. For instance, Barry voting against The Parque project (which I supported) didn’t stop the CEO of Falcon Ventures, who was running the project, from giving Barry a $5,000 check. 

That’s not a “gotcha” either. A campaign contribution does not automatically purchase an agreement or a relationship. Citizens of Scottsdale who live and work here donate to candidates for all kinds of reasons, and candidates should be judged by their votes, positions, and records, not what people say on this blog or on anonymous social media pages.

Barry Graham and his allies are insulting the intelligence of voters with these attacks.

The reality is Barry Graham, and his allies are throwing everything they can at me because they are worried about losing. Barry Graham has shown himself to be an ethically challenged chaos agent who is more focused on spinning up stories, potentially enabling fake troll accounts online, and obsessing about Axon than he is on making you, the voters, lives better.

After years in the public eye, people have figured out Barry’s schtick. Talk a good game, say you want transparency, say you want to hear the voice of the people, then turn around and shut people out while making a mockery of City Hall.

At one point, Barry said he didn’t realize how special Scottsdale was until he left to go back East. Barry would end up working out of state for several years before returning to run for office. I, on the other hand, know this community and have never taken it for granted. I was born and raised here. This is where I built my career. I never left. I’ve always known what makes it special. And watching Barry Graham turn our city into a circus breaks my heart. I truly have deep sympathy for Barry’s supporters and those who trumpet his talking points. I believe Graham’s supporters just want a Scottsdale that they feel works for them. Republicans, Democrats, and Independents put their faith in Barry because they believed in him. He’s made a mockery of that faith. I’m extending my hand and offering a fresh start to them.

I’m hopeful to earn a seat on the council. To do it, I’ll need every dollar and generous donation I can get from voters across Scottsdale to spread my message of common sense. Scottsdale residents of all backgrounds can donate here: https://www.zubiaforscottsdale.com/donate

And Barry, in the spirit of accepting donations from folks we don’t always agree with, you and your supporters are more than welcome to donate as well.