SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. (KGUN) — Sierra Vista's upcoming city council election has an unusual problem heading into November — more open seats than candidates on the ballot.
Three city council seats are up for election, but only 2 candidates qualified to appear on the ballot. Jill Adams, City Clerk for the City of Sierra Vista, says at least 10 people submitted interest statements, but only 2 gathered the required 726 signatures to secure a spot. She says the shortfall likely came down to underestimating the effort involved.
"People perhaps underestimated how much work it might be, and didn't start as early as they could have, and so they failed to get the numbers," Adam said.
One person has since registered as a write-in candidate, but that still leaves one council seat without a contender. Write-in candidates must receive a minimum of 726 votes to be considered — the same threshold that replaces the signature requirement for ballot-listed candidates.
Adams said the situation, while unusual, is not entirely without precedent.
"Write-ins have become a little more normal. We had them with the county attorney, and we've had some in county races recently, and it just seems like it's become a little more normal," she said.
Still, Adams acknowledged the ballot could confuse voters.
"It's a fairly standard election. There's just not going to be a lot of names, so it will be confusing to some people when a ballot comes and it says vote for four, and there's only two names."
Mayoral candidates are: Carolyn Flowers, Brandon Martin and Mark Rodriguez.
City Council Candidates are: Brian Miers and Edward Wozniak. Wesley Hewitt is a write-in candidate.
Adams said the city does not typically see this kind of candidate shortage.
"That's not what we normally see. Normally, we have more candidates for council than we have seats."
If no additional write-in candidates come forward before the September 4 deadline, the city council will be forced to appoint a new member after the new year. Last year, the mayor and council appointed 2 people to fill vacant seats.
"It was unusual to have two as close together as what we had last year, but it is not unusual for us to have people resigning and and doing an appointment to fill them," Adams said.
The mayoral race is also on the November ballot, with 3 candidates competing for that seat.
The deadline to register as a write-in candidate is September 4. The election is in November.
In addition to the mayoral and council races, Sierra Vista voter will also vote on the city's general plan— Vistas 2040.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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Alexis Ramanjulu is a reporter in Cochise County for KGUN 9. She began her journalism career reporting for the Herald/Review in Sierra Vista, which she also calls home. Share your story ideas with Alexis by emailing alexis.ramanjulu@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook.
