A rocket scientist, a lawyer, and a union leader walk into a bar…..
The Pima County Board of Supervisors had to choose from a rocket scientist, a lawyer, and a union leader to replace recently resigned Representative Daniel Patterson.
Yesterday, they chose the lawyer to represent Legislative District 29. Nicholas Fontana, a recently registered Independent, won in a 3-2 vote.
Ramón Valdez made a motion to appoint union organizer, Leon Sierra. He was backed by Richard Elías. Sharon Bronson moved to appoint Fontana, which was seconded by Ann Day.
Fontana has operated his own law firm for the past two years. Prior to that, he was a Pascua Yaqui public defender since 2002. He has also served as a pro tem judge for the Tohono O’odham Tribal Center since September 2010.
House minority leader, Representative Steve Farley, announced that the Democrats will invite Daniel Patterson’s Independent replacement to caucus with them. Farley made the gesture with a straight face, despite the fact that Fontana changed his party registration to Independent only three days after Patterson resigned. For years, Fontana was a registered Democrat.
Fontana was nominated by a citizens’ panel along with Raytheon employee Albert Jordan and Sierra.
Related articles: