It wasn’t supposed to be like this for freshly appointed Democratic State Representative Brian Fernandez. Political success should have come easily to him since he was appointed to fill the seat held by his mother, Charlene Fernandez, prior to her accepting a position in the Biden administration.
Brian had spent much of his adult life outside of the district, but family connections in a rural district like Legislative District 23 should have made all the difference once he was quickly sworn into office. His election to the State Senate in this safe Democrat district was also supposed to be smooth sailing, but storm clouds generated by an incoming Republican red wave have alarmed Democrats who are concerned about this seat and its implications for legislative seats around the state.
Fernandez’ district was redrawn as part of redistricting as a non-competitive district with a nearly 17 % Democrat advantage. Yet recent polling suggests that the race may be a dead heat between Fernandez and Republican opponent, Gary Garcia Snyder. Garcia Snyder is active in the community and garnered a fair amount of media attention over the last year or two thanks to work he did to catch in individuals engaged in election fraud. That work led to prosecution and conviction, a rarity in today’s world.
Fernandez has also angered a number of Democrats by attacking a fellow Hispanic lawmaker, being critical of both her intelligence and physical appearance, according to various reports. State Representative Alma Hernandez filed ethics charges against Fernandez for, among other things, calling her a “Fat F**k,” a charge Fernandez denies but, one where his defense of claiming he only called her a “Dumb F**k” does little to assuage his critics.
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Local politicos think there is more to the district than registration numbers. “Fernandez is like a Bernie Sanders socialist, and this is a rural district where voters may be registered as Democrats, but they’re not trying to burn their bras and melt down all the guns.” said one GOP observer. “They need jobs, they need better pay, and even Democrats in Yuma want border security, and a guy like Fernandez wants to talk about abortion and climate change because that’s what his friends in Tempe are talking about. He might be really miscalculating.”
Yuma residents say his decision to promote his candidacy on Agua Fria School District property shows his desperation to keep his slipping grip on Democrat votes. The pictures tweeted out on his Twitter account, showing him with students holding campaign signs evoke memories of the Sunnyside School District’s legal troubles in 2011, when young athletes were coerced into spending their free time promoting that District’s override ballot measure. According to sources, a campaign violation complaint is in the works.
“Some of our members, especially from Yuma and San Luis, have worked so hard for so many years to ensure that our electorate is not manipulated by political predators, so it is extremely disappointing to see Mr. Fernandez appear to take advantage of youth and their facilities to promote himself,” said Sergio Arellano, Executive Director of Conserva Mi Voto, and organization dedicated to “amplifying the voices of the growing Latino conservative community. “For years the people of District 23 have been seen as nothing more than the property of the Democratic Party. No mas. We are no one’s sure vote.”
“It is disappointing to see someone such as Mr. Fenandez violate the public’s trust by pretending to be a supporter of public education. The Democrats in both the House and Senate voted against every school funding bill, and then they turn around and try to push the passage of overrides and bonds on the strapped residents of rural communities,” said David Lara, Yuma Union High School District #70 school board member. “Not only that, but he also seems to disregard the prohibition against electioneering on school premises. This is why I have dedicated so many years to election integrity; we have too few politicians who have any integrity.”
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For Democrats, their concerns extend beyond this district to other districts where the Democrat edge is smaller. If a D+17 district is vulnerable, then how many other districts might be in jeopardy? “If this is just Fernandez being a bad candidate and Garcia Snyder getting a lot of support from Hispanic and Democrat voters, then okay,” said a consultant who had done work in Yuma before, adding, “but if this is a Democrat brand problem? Then Katie bar the door in about a week’s time!”