Seven candidates are running to fill three seats on the Tempe City Council for four-year terms starting in July.
The primary election will be held March 8, with a general election, if needed, on May 17. Information about the election can be found at tempe.gov/election.
Candidates are Jennifer Adams, Arlene Chin, Berdetta Hodge, Gina Kash, Harper Lines, Casey Clowes, and John Skelton.
Adams is the only incumbent running, and two of the three seats should be filled by newcomers because multi-term councilmembers Robin Arredondo-Savage and Lauren Kuby aren’t seeking re-election.
Other candidates bring a wide range of experience and interests. Chin was previously the first Asian American councilmember after being appointed in 2019; she served 13 months and advocates for small businesses and balanced growth.
Hodge has been a Tempe Union High School District board member since 2016 and also champions affordable housing as well as stronger education, more modern city infrastructure and a healthy local economy.
Kash started as a staffer at the Arizona House of Representatives in 1998 and touts her experience as a research analyst and policy advisor. Her focus is on jobs, affordable housing and procuring state funding for small businesses, the arts and nonprofits. Lines, a musician, is on the Tempe Arts and Culture Commission and works for the University of Phoenix. Improving education access is one of his big issues. Clowes is an attorney whose priorities include affordable housing, traffic and sustainability.
Skelton, a former quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, operates a senior care center and aims to help small businesses and address housing diversity and homelessness.
For more details on the candidates and their positions, forums are online from Jan. 12 and Jan. 19.
Voters also can call Tempe 311 at (480) 350-4311 or email clerk@tempe.gov for information. Voters may register or update their voter registration addresses through Feb. 7 at servicearizona.com/VoterRegistration.
