The Scottsdale Mayoral run-off between Mayor David Ortega and Lisa Borowsky is entering its final stages, and there are a number of things we can glean from the final stretch.
First, the last campaign finance reports of note have been released, and that offers crucial insight. Q3 was a very strong fundraising quarter for Mayor Ortega, raising $113K and leaving himself with $149K cash on hand as of the end of September. That said, nearly $45K of that came in the form of a personal loan.
Meanwhile, Borowsky raised $93K for the reporting period and sits with a relatively weak $44K cash on hand; she is in need of a significant last-minute infusion of cash to keep relatively close to Ortega.
Meanwhile, Ortega released a professionally produced new video which is currently running all across the city, and mail pieces have already hit some mailboxes, including one that goes right after Borowsky. Meanwhile, Borowsky’s digital advertising presence has been a bit on the light side, merely running this ad highlighting “Ortega’s vision for Scottsdale” and apparently not currently running any ads on Meta or Google, with a communications and advertising strategy that seems to be largely dependent on print advertising. She has sent some mail pieces out, and will undoubtedly get a boost being a favored candidate of the local Republican party.
As for messaging, the battle lines are both clear and predictable. Ortega is focused on how Scottsdale has remained a great city under his tenure while highlighting some of his achievements, and Borowsky is going with a message about how Ortega will turn Scottsdale into a sanctuary city for illegal immigrants and the homeless. Necessary to a degree for anyone challenging an incumbent, although more explicitly spelling out a vision for a better Scottsdale might help.
While both campaigns have been less-than-perfect, considering the money advantage it’s certainly Advantage Ortega at this point. But stranger things have happened; after all, few thought Ortega would win last time around.