Primary Election Campaign 2016 Signs of The Times > State Solicitor General John Lopez Steps Up

GOP State Rep. Kelly Townsend District 16 R-Mesa, perhaps best known for sponsoring a bill that gives the Salt River horses new protections from a roundup, is the latest episode in the local and national media attention about election campaign signs here in Mesa.
The prior episode, regarding freedom of speech and trademark law issues, represented by attorney Paul Levy on behalf of candidate Jeremy Whittaker in his election campaign for Mesa City Council District #2 was featured in three earlier posts on this blog: on May 25, June 01 and June 05, 2016.
Please go back and read them if you haven't taken the opportunity . . .

AZ State Solicitor General John Lopez

Townsend questioned whether candidates could start putting out their signs 60 days ahead of early voting. On paper, the law is clear - it says local governments cannot remove political signs if certain conditions are met.
But that prohibition exists only from 60 days before a primary election and ending 15 days after the general election. Candidates who lose in the primary have to remove their signs 15 days after that race.
But Rep. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa, pointed out that Arizona law says early ballots go out about a month ahead of the actual primary. And voters can fill them out and mail them back as soon as they get them.AZ State Solicitor General Lopez said that interpretation of the law does not work.
“The date of the primary election is the date specifically provided by statute, not the date that ballots are mailed out for the primary election,” he wrote.
“Nothing in the early balloting statute ... purports to alter the date of the 'primary election,' “ Lopez continued. “It simply allows qualified electors to vote by early ballot.”
Anyway, he said reading the law the way Townsend suggested “would be to manufacture ambiguity.”
Townsend, who didn't comment after Howie Fischer's first reporting, said she agrees with what Lopez concluded but sought the opinion because a political foe was erecting signs earlier than 90 days before the primary, using the early ballot date. Townsend said if that was the way the law could be read, “I didn't want to lose 30 days' opportunity.”
The state law governing political signs trumps city laws  Excerpts taken from Solicitor general rejects bid to jump the gun on campaign signs

By: Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services June 7, 2016 , 4:23 pm

Read more: http://azcapitoltimes.com/news/2016/06/07/solicitor-general-rejects-bid-to-jump-the-gun-on-campaign-signs/#ixzz4BTHlNRhb

Who is Kelly Townsend?

Kelly Townsend (born September 27, 1968) is an Arizona politician and an active Republican member of the Arizona House of Representatives representing District 16 since January 14, 2013.

In 2010 Townsend initially sought a Legislative seat in District 22 six-way August 24, 2010 Republican Primary, placing fourth with 5,446 votes; other frontrunners included Eddie Farnsworth and Steve Urie who went on to win the district's seats in the November 2, 2010 General election.

In 2012 she was Redistricted to District 16, and along with other politicians, Townsend was one of four candidates for the August 28, 2012 Republican Primary, placing first with 9,298 votes

[ from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Townsend ]

 

More complete information from Ballotpedia

https://ballotpedia.org/Kelly_Townsend

Biography

Townsend earned B.S. in Human Communications/Psychology and Small Business from Southern Oregon University in 1997.^[1]

Her professional experience includes working for

US Airways Group as Management in Customer Relations (Complaint Department) from 2004 to 2008,

Ashland Community Hospital La Clinica Del Valle as Doula Program Director from April 1997 to October 2004 and at

Hub Distributing/Miller's Outpost as a manager from March 1988 to April 1995.

Townsend served in the US Navy as an E-4 Aviation Structural Mechanic from March 1988 to February 1992.^[1]

 

 

Arizona State Solicitor General John Lopez

Good Source: https://www.azag.gov/profile/john-lopez