Sandra Kennedy

PHOENIX  - Three former Arizona legislators are now state utility and securities regulators.

Democrats Sandra Kennedy and Paul Newman and Republican Bob Stump on Monday took their oath of office to begin four-year terms on the Arizona Corporation Commission. They were elected in November.

With Stump joining incumbents Kris Mayes and Gary Pierce, Republicans retain control of the five-member elected commission.

The three new commissioners fill seats vacated by Republicans Mike Gleason, Jeff Hatch-Miller and Bill Mundell.

Over the weekend, we reported on how the political job market at the state Capitol was seemingly impervious to the growing unemployment rate.
Here's more evidence of the job opportunities that have opened up in the wake of last month's elections:
Cris Arzaga-Williams, who for years served as chief of staff for House Democrats, is now chief of staff to incoming Corporation Commissioner Sandra Kennedy. Replacing Arzaga-Williams is Keely Varvel Hartsell, whose resume includes a stint as Senate policy director.
Alan Stephens, former co-chief of staff to Gov. Janet Napolitano, is back in state government as chief of staff to Corporation Commissioner-elect Paul ...

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State Rep. Bob Stump (R-Peoria) now leads Democrat Sam George by just over 1,000 votes in the still-undecided contest to see who will fill the third open seat on the Arizona Corporation Commission.

With 100 percent of precincts now reporting, Secretary of State Jan Brewer's office has the tally at 829,902 for George and 830,956 for Stump, a change from the previous count which showed George leading Stump by several hundred votes.

The official canvass from the Secretary of State isn't due until Dec. 1, though results may be known before then. It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of provisional and absentee ballots are yet to be counted, especially in Maricopa County, which contains most of the state's population.

UPDATED 

Most of the votes have been counted in the race for the three open seats on the Arizona Corporation Commission, but so far the race for third is still on.

Returns from the Arizona Secretary of State's office show that Democrats Sandra Kennedy and Paul Newman are all but certain to secure the first two slots, with Republican candidates Barry Wong and state Rep. Marian McClure (R-Tucson) likely too far back in the count to be in consideration.

However, the race for the third seat is nearly even. Sam George, the third of three Democratic candidates, and state Rep. Bob Stump (R-Peoria) are locked in a battle for the final slot that might come down to the last vote counted.

Half of all votes have been counted, and so far none of the six candidates for Arizona Corporation Commissioner are significantly outpacing or under-performing against any other.

As it stands, Democrat Sandra Kennedy leads the pack with 17.8 percent, while state Rep. Marian McClure (R-Tucson) trails at 15.8 percent.

That means there is no greater than a 2 percent difference between any of the candidates in the race.

In the race for the three empty seats on the Arizona Corporation Commission, the Democratic team's hopes appear to be buoyed by new internal poll numbers, while Republicans remain cautiously optimistic of their chances, according to two of the candidates.

Democratic candidate Paul Newman said he didn't know how the vote was going to end up, but that two rallies at which he appeared over the course of Monday "should translate positively" for the Democratic candidates. 

Newman was the second-highest vote getter in the four-way Democratic primary where Kara Kelty was eliminated. He and fellow Democratic nominees Sam George and Sandra Kennedy have dubbed themselves the "Solar Team," and are focusing on issues of renewable energy, solar at the forefront.  

"Arizona needs strong advocates for solar," said Newman. "We absolutely should be the solar leader of the world."

Over half the votes have been counted in the Arizona Corporation Commission Democratic primary, and Sandra Kennedy so far tops the four-person field with 31 percent.

At 54 percent of returns in, Paul Newman is holding onto second place at 26 percent, and Sam George and Kara Kelty are within one point of each other, with George leading Kelty 22 percent to 21 percent.