Arizona's Democratic Leaders Campaign Online For Biden

By Scott Bourque
Published: Friday, July 3, 2020 - 12:46pm

With the coronavirus presenting unprecedented challenges for the 2020 presidential campaign, Arizona’s leading Democrats have been going online to make the case for former Vice President Joe Biden. 

That includes State House Democratic Leader Charlene Fernandez, who represents the Yuma area — one of the areas hardest hit by the pandemic. She says both President Trump and Gov. Doug Ducey have failed the state through a lackluster response to the pandemic, which has killed close to 1,800 Arizonans to date.

“I know that Vice President Biden has that plan, he knows exactly what it’s like to face adversity and come out on the other side stronger," Fernandez said. "He knows what it takes to bring all of us together.”

Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego joined Fernandez in a recent online forum, slamming the Trump administration for pitting Phoenix in a bidding war against other cities for protective equipment and impeding the city’s access to critical testing equipment.

“It is heartbreaking to serve as mayor of constituents who have to wait hours while they feel terrible or already sick, or get dehydrated, or worry that their car will run out of gas," Gallego said. "And to have a president who says we want less testing, or to slow it down ... every day I open my e-mail box to stories of people who are fighting cancer and who are worried about the politicization of masks. I really appreciate that the (former) vice president has been willing to wear a mask and say it is about public health."

The state’s Democratic Party leaders place the blame squarely on Trump and Ducey for rejecting expert advice and prioritizing economic outcomes over public health. Prominent Republicans, including Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs, call on the White House to dismantle its Coronavirus Task Force claiming the experts on the task force undermine the president's plans to restart the national economy.

Gallego said things could have been different with Biden at the helm and that he'd listen to experts.

“I ... appreciate that Vice President Biden’s plan includes leading with science," Gallego said. "Dr. (Anthony) Fauci is a national treasure and the fact that the vice president would extend him and ask him to serve a sixth president is very meaningful.”

Current polling puts Biden slightly ahead of Trump in Arizona.

Politics