Maricopa County Board of Supervisors primary: Sellers stomped by challenger, Galvin advances

PHOENIX – One of the two Republicans facing primary election challenges for their seats on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors is getting the boot.

Jack Sellers, the current board chairman, was trailing District 1 challenger Mark Stewart by an insurmountable margin of 30 percentage points, 65.2%-34.8%, as of Wednesday.

Stewart, a Chandler City Council member, will face off against Joel Navarro in the November general election. Navarro, chair of Maricopa Association of Governments Human Services and Community Initiatives Committee, ran unopposed on the Democratic side.

Meanwhile, Supervisor Thomas Galvin, the board’s newest member, survived a challenge from former state lawmaker Michelle Ugenti-Rita in District 2. Galvin led 57.2%-42.8% after Election Day results were in and will face Julie Cieniawski, an education advocate who was unopposed in the Democratic primary, in the general election.

Ugenti-Rita congratulated Galvin on his victory Wednesday morning.

🇺🇸 A Message From The Campaign:

I am so proud of our campaign and would like to give a heartfelt thank you to everyone who voted for me and all of my incredible supporters. Our political system is precious and I am honored to have been apart of it for so many years.…

— Michelle Ugenti-Rita (MUR) (@MichelleUgenti) July 31, 2024

The numbers could change as the remaining ballots are tallied, but major shifts are unlikely because a majority of the votes already have been counted and reported.

Who will be new members of Maricopa County Board of Supervisors?

With Sellers’ defeat, the board will have at least three new faces next year.

Republicans Bill Gates (District 3) and Clint Hickman (District 4) did not seek reelection.

In District 3, former state Sen. Kate Brophy McGee won the GOP primary with 72.5% of the vote to set up a general election matchup against former Phoenix City Councilmember Daniel Valenzuela, who was unopposed in the Democratic primary.

Meanwhile, Hickman’s seat will be filled by Republican U.S. Rep. Debbie Lesko, who is retiring from Congress, or Democrat David Sandoval. Lesko had 72.3% of the vote as of Wednesday morning to trounce her primary challenger, while Sandoval was unopposed.

Finally, District 5’s matchup between incumbent Steve Gallardo, the only Democrat on the Board of Supervisors, and Republican Ann Niemann was already set since both candidates ran unopposed in the primary.

This is an updated version of a story originally published July 30, 2024.

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