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Chairman Mark Kimble responds to shocking comments made by Arizona Legislators toward the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission

Mark Kimble
Clean Elections Chairman
Mark Kimble
Phoenix, AZ - May 28, 2019

During a recent caucus of Republicans in the state House, two legislators made an extremely offensive statement about leadership of the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission.

Specifically, while discussing a possible Clean Elections role in a bill, Rep. John Allen asked, “Can we virtually shoot the head of Clean Elections?” Rep. Kevin Payne said “Yes.” To her credit, Rep. Becky Nutt told her colleagues that type of talk was inappropriate. The exchange was reported on Twitter by Jeremy Duda, associate editor of the Arizona Mirror.

To that end, the following statement is from current Citizens Clean Elections Commission Chairman Mark Kimble, in response to this alarming exchange:

It is deeply troubling - particularly to those of us from Tucson - to joke about shooting someone in the head because of a policy difference. That is not funny. Reps. Allen and Payne owe an apology to all Arizonans for thinking it is appropriate to jest about shooting people in the head.

The late Sen. John McCain was known for urging his colleagues to “disagree without being disagreeable.” The comments by Reps. Allen and Payne go far beyond being disagreeable. They are shameful and disgusting.

About the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission (CCEC). The CCEC is an independent state body made up of individuals who have sworn to faithfully administer the Clean Elections Act. Voters passed the Citizens Clean Elections Act in 1998 to promote participation in the political process and to ensure Arizona's politics are free from corruption. The act includes administration of voter education, clean funding programs, and campaign finance enforcement.

Members of the Commission are appointed alternatively by the governor and the highest-ranking official of the opposite party. Commissioners must not have served in, or run for, public office for five years, nor have been an officer of a political party. No more than two members of the commission may be from any one party or county. Currently, the Commission is made up of two Republicans, two Democrats and one independent. Learn more at azcleanelections.gov.

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