Katie Hobbs’ reported running mate John Giles dropped GOP registration months before pick
Voter records show the former Mesa mayor switched from Republican to no party preference in May, months before Gov. Katie Hobbs reportedly tapped him as a running mate.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 20: Mesa, Arizona Mayor John Giles speaks on stage during the second day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 20, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic Party supporters are gathering in Chicago, as current Vice President Kamala Harris is named her party's presidential nominee. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Former Mesa Mayor John Giles quietly changed his voter registration from Republican to no party preference in May, months before he was reportedly tapped by Hobbs as a running mate.
Maricopa County voter records obtained through a public records request show Giles filed the change on May 17, checking “Other” and selecting “No Party Preference” on his registration form. He had been a registered Republican since at least 1986, when his first registration appeared in county records.
The party switch came roughly three months before the New York Times reported Tuesday that Hobbs planned to name Giles to the Democratic ticket in a bipartisan play for her reelection bid against Republican nominee Andy Biggs and his lieutenant governor running mate Sine Kerr.
Giles, a longtime critic of President Donald Trump, had already distanced himself from the GOP.
He endorsed Kamala Harris in 2024 and spoke at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Before then, he endorsed Hobbs over Republican Kari Lake in 2022.
He has been a prominent figure in Hobbs’ “Arizona Over Party” coalition, a group of Republicans and independents backing the governor’s reelection.
Arizona voters approved the creation of the lieutenant governor’s office in 2022, and whoever wins in November will be the first person to hold the position.
Giles’ voter file shows that for the July 2026 primary, his party was listed as “other” and he received a Democratic ballot. As recently as the July 2024 primary, he had voted on a Republican ballot.
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Comments
16 Comments
Agree. He was probably a typical partisan who never really thought about voting for the other side until The Idiot came along and made him look critically at his own party. He’s decent and smart so he didn’t like what he saw. Now he’s Indy, which ultimately is the best place to be.
You’ve seen The Idiot’s performance over the past two years. Still believe HE was the lesser evil?
Does it really matter what party he is registered to? This guy seems to be like me - floating right and left depending on the legitimacy of the issue and what's right for the people and without regard for partisanship.