Tim Nelson

Tim Nelson, the former general counsel to Gov. Janet Napolitano and the Democratic candidate for Maricopa County attorney in 2008, is interested in being appointed U.S. attorney for Arizona, but said he is not first in line for it.

"It's basically Dennis Burke's to refuse," said Nelson, referring to the governor's former chief of staff, who is believed to be the top contender for the appointment.

However, Nelson said, "if he didn't take it I would be interested."

Among the names being floated as possible contenders to be appointed U.S. attorney for Arizona, Andrei Cherny's keeps popping up.

Cherny, the Democratic adviser, speechwriter and author who is an assistant Arizona attorney general by day and all-arounder for the Obama team when called upon, is often mentioned as someone who would be a fit for the U.S. attorney position. He has semi-celebrity status in Arizona Democratic circles, and a law degree from U.C. Berkeley's Boalt Hall doesn't hurt.

One source close to President-elect Obama's transition team, speaking on condition of anonymity, told PolitickerAZ.com that Cherny may be a contender, but didn't have any further specifics to offer.

Low turnout among youth and Latino voters was largely to blame for Tim Nelson's defeat at the hands of incumbent and now re-elected Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas, said Joshua Kilroy, who managed Nelson's campaign.

"We were counting on youth voters and especially Latino voters, and they just didn't show up," Kilroy told PolitickerAZ.com. 

Kilroy said those two groups, which saw an uptick in turnout nationwide Nov. 4 over previous years, didn't come out in significantly larger numbers than in past elections.

Andrew Thomas appears to have won re-election over Democratic challenger Tim Nelson.

With 97 percent of precincts reporting, Thomas led Nelson roughly 52 to 44 percent.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas will jointly address supporters and the media in Fountain Hills Tuesday night, the campaigns announced.

Both are Republican incumbents who are facing re-election battles. While a recent poll showed Arpaio way out in front of his Democratic opponent, Dan Saban, the contest between Thomas and challenger Tim Nelson is expected to be much closer.

Arpaio and Thomas are scheduled to speak at 10:15 p.m. at 16519 E. Jacklin Drive, a private residence in Fountain Hills.

Maricopa County Attorney Tim Nelson has used an estimated $20,000 to those behind a blog he believes was operated by two of Andrew Thomas' aides. Nelson's campaign hired an England analyst, Michael Faringdon to examine the website and writings from various Thomas aides to try and make a link to the authors of "ACLU Tim Will Say Anything to Get Elected."    

Maricopa County Attorney Tim Nelson has used an estimated $20,000 to identify a blog he believes was operated by two of Andrew Thomas' aides. Nelson's campaign hired an England analyst, Michael Faringdon to examine the website and writings from various Thomas aides to try and make a link to the authors of "ACLU Tim Will Say Anything to Get Elected."    

Maricopa County attorney candidate Tim Nelson kept up his call for the release of records related to the arrest of New Times publishers Mike Lacey and Jim Larkin, holding a press conference at Arizona Democratic Party headquarters Thursday to demand the office of incumbent county attorney Andrew Thomas reveal the records.

The county attorney's office has said that Dennis Wilenchik, who was hired to handle the case, was the authority in the investigation and arrest, and that the arrest was conducted on the authority of a Maricopa County sheriff's deputy, Dave Hendershott, without consultation with the county attorney's office.

Barnett Lotstein of the county attorney's office referred to an affidavit from Henderschott, where the deputy claims to have been solely responsible for signing the arrest warrant.

That explanation wasn't good enough for Nelson. Referring to the affidavit, Nelson said at the event, "After years of standing with the Sheriff’s Office on a host of abusive investigations, Andrew Thomas has belatedly thrown them under the bus to try to deflect criticism against himself just one week before the election," according to remarks released by the campaign.

CLARIFICATION INCLUDED

A poll from Arizona State University's Cronkite School of Journalism and KAET/Eight, the Arizona PBS station, shows incumbent Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas leading Democrat Tim Nelson by seven points, 42 to 35, with 21 percent of voters still undecided.

"With the sampling error for the Maricopa County sample of 574 registered voters at plus or minus 4 percent, the race for county attorney is a statistical dead heat," read the memo accompanying the poll.

Michael Kielsky, the Libertarian candidate in the race, polled at two percent in the survey conducted Oct. 20-22. 

The office of Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas will tell the lawyer for the Tim Nelson campaign that it has no records of any communications between anyone in it and SCA, the anonymous Mesa group whose contributions to the Arizona Republican Party allegedly went toward funding an ad attacking Nelson.

On Tuesday, the campaign of Tim Nelson, who is running to unseat Thomas, says it sent a public records request to the offices of Thomas and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio regarding the ad. The campaign quoted a section from the request that read: 

It appears that your campaign for re-election is engaged in massive campaign violations that undermine the integrity of this election. Not only has your party…hidden and funneled several campaign contributions, but we believe you and your agents knew about it, participated in it, encouraged it and benefitted from it. While Arizonans for Public Safety purports to be an independent expenditure committee…It is hard to believe Mr. Pullen and Mr. McCaffrey have not discussed with you or your campaign’s agents your re-election campaign.

The Nelson campaign asked for a response to that request within 48 hours.

Thursday, Barnett Lotstein, spokesman for the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, told PolitickerAZ.com that the response would be an unequivocal disavowal of any communications between SCA or Arizonans for Public Safety, which produced the ad.