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| AZ's First District (in pink) covers a huge area |
It is widely known that political campaigns can be riddled with negativity and lies, and that politicians will do just about anything to get elected. Certain elements of this can be found in the race for Arizona’s 1st District. In a district filled with a wide variety of issues and many types of people, incumbent Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick and Republican challenger Paul Gosar are trying to appeal to constituents in any way possible, including the use of attack ads in many instances, and a general vagueness on the most controversial issues.
Due to the many polarizing issues that are relevant in this election, the candidates in Arizona’s 1st are playing it safe on issue positions, not wanting to turn off potential voters. An article in the Arizona Daily Sun illustrates how campaign advisors are telling candidates to avoid taking too many positions on major issues because it is polarizing. Since actual issues are being avoided, there have been an abundance of attack ads. Gosar has been accused of being a flip-flopper, a mud-slinger, a “blatant” liar, and an out of touch millionaire who has evaded taxes. Kirkpatrick has also been accused of lying, along with supporting reckless policies and having “fallen lock-step with Nancy Pelosi.”
Due to the many polarizing issues that are relevant in this election, the candidates in Arizona’s 1st are playing it safe on issue positions, not wanting to turn off potential voters. An article in the Arizona Daily Sun illustrates how campaign advisors are telling candidates to avoid taking too many positions on major issues because it is polarizing. Since actual issues are being avoided, there have been an abundance of attack ads. Gosar has been accused of being a flip-flopper, a mud-slinger, a “blatant” liar, and an out of touch millionaire who has evaded taxes. Kirkpatrick has also been accused of lying, along with supporting reckless policies and having “fallen lock-step with Nancy Pelosi.”
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| Gosar hopes voters feel this way about Pelosi |
The dangers of being too specific on policy positions are especially grave in a district with many polarizing issues. According to Sydney Hay, a former Republican candidate for the House in the district, she was advised to poll name recognition above hot issues, and that she would adjust her message depending on the town she was speaking in. “In mining towns, I would talk a lot more about natural resources issues than I would talk about that in Prescott," Hay said in the same Arizona Daily Sun piece. It seems as though Gosar and Kirkpatrick are following the lead of Hay and most other congressional candidates, in that they are playing it safe on their own issues, but wildly attacking each other’s views.
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