A first-of-its-kind debate is set for Oct. 5, giving candidates to be Arizona's lieutenant governor a platform to air their ideas and stump for their running mates just two days before early voting begins.
The debate is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will include candidates Sine Kerr, a Republican, and Angela Harrolle Mohan of the No Labels Party. Republican gubernatorial nominee Andy Biggs picked Kerr as his running mate, and Mohan is running with No Labels nominee Teri Hourihan.
Kerr is a former state senator and farmer from Buckeye who most recently had been tapped by the Trump administration to serve as the state executive director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency in Arizona. Mohan is a real estate broker and former chief
executive officer of The 100 Club, a nonprofit that supports families of first responders who are killed or seriously injured in the line of duty.
Two other candidates will not be debating.
Former Republican John Giles, a former Mesa mayor who is running with Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, previously confirmed he would not debate. Hobbs, who did not debate during her 2022 campaign, has also chosen not to participate in a debate against Biggs that is scheduled for Oct. 6.
Lisa Castillo, the running mate of Green Party nominee Risa Lombardo, did not respond to a debate invitation, according to the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission, which puts on the debates in partnership with the Arizona Media Association.
Lombardo, who is confirmed for the Oct. 6 gubernatorial debate, has faced accusations from her own party that she is a sham candidate. The commission is investigating whether she qualified for public funding of her campaign. Lombardo sued the commission, but the case was dismissed in September because the commission had not taken final action, according to reporting by The Arizona Mirror.
Arizona voters will elect a lieutenant governor for the first time this year on a ticket with each gubernatorial nominee. The new role was created by a voter-approved 2022 law that says the lieutenant governor, not the secretary of state, takes over if the governor cannot finish their term. The governor must also appoint their running mate to a job in the administration, like leading a state agency or serving as their chief of staff.
Early voting in Arizona begins on Oct. 7. Election Day is Nov. 3.
Reach reporter Stacey Barchenger at stacey.barchenger@arizonarepublic.com or 480-416-5669.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What to watch in Arizona’s first lieutenant governor debate
