It looks like Jake Martin is winning the battle for institutional support as he vies to be appointed the next Pima County treasurer.
The county supervisors are set to appoint a replacement for former Treasurer Brian Johnson, who resigned in disgrace after he was accused of sexually harassing his staff, at the board’s meeting on Tuesday.
Members of the public can submit letters to persuade the supervisors to appoint a certain candidate. So far, the letters sent by members of the local political elite lean heavily in favor of Martin.
We’ll find out next week how much weight those endorsements carry. As of Thursday, the supervisors haven’t said publicly which candidates they prefer.
Jake Martin
For now, here’s what the supervisors are chewing on.
Thomas Bogart, the chief financial officer at the Marana Unified School District said he worked with Martin on several projects and Martin was always professional, knowledgeable and responsive.
“Mr. Martin has consistently demonstrated a collaborative approach to addressing issues and working with stakeholders,” Bogart wrote. “He communicates effectively, follows through on commitments, and approaches his work with professionalism.”
Dan Streeter, the superintendent at MUSD, echoed Bogart, saying Martin is “exceptionally accessible” and has “systematically broken down traditional silos, ensuring that our leadership team remains informed, aligned, and supported.”
Cochise County Treasurer Catherine Traywick also praised Martin.
“Since meeting Jake shortly after he took the office, I have been impressed by not only his curiosity and drive to understand the statutory duties of the treasurers office, but his ability to seek ‘wisdom’ and advice from longer serving treasurers, and to question some of the ‘we’ve always done it that way’ responses from some of the newer treasurers,” Traywick wrote.
Pinal County Treasurer Michael McCord said “continuity within the Treasurer’s Office is essential” and Martin’s “knowledge of treasury functions allows him to step into the role without the disruption that often accompanies a leadership transition.”
McCord highlighted the need to avoid disruptions to jurisdictions like the Golder Ranch Fire District, which serves residents in both Pima and Pinal counties.
“Beyond his technical qualifications, Mr. Martin has consistently conducted himself in a professional, respectful, and collaborative manner among Arizona’s county treasurers and finance professionals,” McCord wrote.
Martin also got the support of a group of 23 employees at the Treasurer’s Office who co-signed a letter.
“We work in the trenches of this office every day. We know firsthand the unique challenges of this role and the specific skills required to manage the county treasurer’s office successfully,” the group wrote. “Mr. Martin has consistently demonstrated those exact qualities.”
Another employee at the Treasurer’s Office, Kathryn Mikronis, also serves as president of the MUSD governing board. She said Martin “consistently demonstrated professionalism, integrity, compassion, and unwavering commitment to public service” during the Johnson debacle.
Technically, Mikronis submitted two separate letters to endorse Martin. In her second letter, sent three days ago, she said she was a victim of harassment by Johnson.
Mikronis and another employee in the department wrote letters of support of Martin while acknowledging they both had been harassed by Johnson.
The only other candidate to get big-name support was Derika Louk.
Former Pima County Treasurer Beth Ford said she hired Louk in 2012 and Louk’s “skills developed rapidly and exceeded the opportunities available within the Treasurer’s Office.”
Derika Louk
Back then, Ford encouraged Louk to pursue other opportunities and she developed expertise at the Pima County Superintendent of Schools Office and as head of the Southern Arizona School Business Officials Association.
“Derika has the skills to be an effective Pima County Treasurer the first day on the job with her thorough knowledge of the office and responsibilities,” Ford wrote.
Ricky D. Hernandez, the CFO at the Tucson Unified School District, also supports Louk.
Hernandez hired Louk when he worked at the Superintendent of Schools Office. She “demonstrated an exceptional aptitude for governmental accounting, treasury operations, and fiscal management” and climbed the ranks within the office.
“She possesses the rare ability to understand not only the technical details of public finance but also the broader policy implications behind those financial decisions,” Hernandez wrote.
As we noted earlier, the county supervisors haven’t said publicly who they plan to appoint, but local officials appear to be lining up behind either Martin or Louk.
Sami Hamed, who ran for treasurer in 2024 in the Democratic primary, got some support from local residents, although one of his friends called him “Sammy” in his written endorsement.
It’s not too late to send in a letter of support or even do the opposite — telling the supervisors why someone would make a bad pick — by emailing the clerk of the board before Tuesday’s meeting.
Another option is call to the public on Tuesday. But make sure you have a light meal before coming to the county administrative building downtown — it’s going to be a long meeting. The fun starts at 5 p.m., but appointing a replacement for Johnson is item #22 on the agenda.
We’re going to start with some advice: Be wary of a person running for political office who says they’re “not a politician.”
Asking for contributions, signatures and endorsements is pretty much the definition of politicking.
In that spirit, meet Jordan Ochoa, who recently filed paperwork to be Tucson’s next mayor (in 2027) and secured the somewhat puzzling exodustucson.com domain name for her campaign.
We couldn’t help but notice that the “certified chicken tender” used AI to generate a picture of her carrying a hard hat and wearing a cowboy hat (those must be some tough chickens), with what we assume she meant to be the Tucson skyline behind her.
She probably should have refined the prompt she fed to her AI tool a little more.
The Superstition Mountains that appear in the background are just a wee bit closer to Phoenix than to Tucson.
To her credit, the Republican candidate has a vast issues page and some popular ideas, but we’re not sure if any politician can, for example, meaningfully address Tucson’s urban heat island effect in a four-year term.
Although maybe it’s possible if a bunch of people leave Tucson to #SaveTucson.
Ochoa’s campaign announcement is a long way from making her the GOP nominee. Tucson Republicans won’t decide who their pick should be until next summer.
Confusing the issue: State Sen. Priya Sundareshan isn’t happy with how Republican lawmakers are writing the language that will appear on ballot measures in November, Capitol scribe Howie Fischer reports. The Tucson Democrat says the Legislative Council (which is made up of lawmakers) is supposed to use an impartial analysis for the summaries of ballot measures, but GOP lawmakers approved language that basically advocates for measures they favor and adds a negative tone to the ones they don’t like, including the Protect Education Act that would rein in the school voucher program.
Getting SNAP is now a full-time job: A Tucson mother of two young children was Exhibit A as The Nation described the effects of the drastic cuts to the SNAP program. The woman sent in her paperwork every way she knew how, but the restrictions put in place by the Trump administration and exacerbated by Arizona’s Department of Economic Security meant she had to take time off work and jump through hoops as she tried to get help feeding her kids.
Injecting uncertainty: The Trump administration has decided not to renew the current USMCA trade rules for another 10 years. Instead, the agreement will now be renegotiated every year, Craig Smith reports for KGUN. Business owners in Southern Arizona say the yearly talks could make companies think twice before investing because they won’t know which trade rules might change. Produce importer Jaime Chamberlain said the uncertainty could slow investments in Mexican farms, which would eventually affect food supplies and prices. Still, he believes the U.S., Mexico and Canada rely too much on each other for trade to walk away from the partnership.
Can’t stay out of trouble: Two more University of Arizona fraternities are in hot water. The UA placed Sigma Phi Epsilon and Phi Delta Theta on probation after investigations found they likely broke the student code of conduct, including rules on alcohol, hazing, and endangerment, Jacob Owens reports for KVOA. The fraternities must pay fines, complete hazing education and stay on probation through May 2027. Five of the university’s 30 fraternities are now on probation, while another investigation into Sigma Alpha Mu is still underway.
Grijalva live on air: Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva will be on the Bill Buckmaster Show today. With new strikes in Iran, bombshells in major national races and only 10 days before the primaries, we can’t think of a better time to call in. Meanwhile, Joe had a one-on-one with Arizona Public Media’s Tony Perkins on The Press Room yesterday, talking about the upcoming primary elections. You can watch it tonight on PBS 6 or AZPM’s website.
We’ve probably got “election season brain” at this point, but we can’t help laughing at this little political sign somebody put up next to the Safeway in Bisbee.
It’s so short and sweet it almost reads like a Mitch Hedberg one-liner.
Thanks to Fred Miller at the Bisbee Wire for sharing it with us.