| NEWS | A Tale of Two Parties How Democrats and Republicans celebrated in Phoenix as an expected red wave never materialized. BY ELIAS WEISS AND KATYA SCHWENK W hen Election Day wrapped up in Arizona, the candidates did what they always do — shuffled off to parties to join supporters, watch results trickle in, and celebrate their victories. But this week, as the expected red wave of Republican wins failed to materi- alize, and vote counting dragged on just like we said it would, Democrats at a downtown Phoenix hotel turned jubilant and Republicans at a Scottsdale resort were grumpy. “This is bullshit,” a middle-aged woman said as she waited in line at the GOP watch party. “If we can’t know the results, can I at least get a fucking drink?” Here are six takeaways from our time at the election night parties on November 8. A Jubilant — and Surprised — Atmosphere for Democrats The election night party for Arizona Democrats was a different affair than the one hosted by state Republicans. Staffers, lobbyists, union leaders, and politicians gathered in a ballroom at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Phoenix. CNN played on two massive screens. The room was drenched in blue lights. The party’s most high-profile candi- dates took the stage, in between network news reports and booming reggaeton and pop tunes: Adrian Fontes, candidate for secretary of state; Kris Mayes, who is vying for attorney general; gubernatorial candi- date Katie Hobbs; and U.S. Representative Ruben Gallego, who coasted to re-election and was the only candidate whose race was decided on November 8. As the polls closed, more people filtered in, and more drinks were had, the party grew energized. After all, the very first results looked good for Democrats. That would change. “We have seen the first results come in, and we are feeling good about what we are seeing,” Hobbs told the crowd to resounding applause. Hobbs spoke about 8:30 p.m., and the first batch of ballots had been counted. The results looked promising for Hobbs and other Democratic contenders, which was expected. These early totals were largely the results from mail-in ballots, which lean Democratic compared with GOP-heavy same-day voting. But still, Hobbs was up significantly. The first batch of results from Maricopa County had her at 58 percent to opponent Kari Lake’s 42 percent. Other Democrats enjoyed higher margins. U.S. Senator Mark Kelly, who opted for an event in Tucson instead of attending the Phoenix party, was up 59 percent to Blake Masters’ 39 in the first batch of Maricopa County votes released. Paired with promising Democratic results nationwide that had begun to trickle in, bucking predictions of a “red wave” of Republican victories in the midterms, the early results seemed hopeful. The energized crowd waved signs and cheered loudly whenever a new win was broadcast on the screens. A man dressed in a light-up eagle costume stopped for delighted selfie-takers. Even Hobbs, who addressed the crowd for less than two minutes, seemed more at ease than usual. It was a jubilant atmosphere — but also slightly surprising. Multiple lobbyists and other campaign workers attending told Phoenix New Times, in confidence, that they had anticipated a grim night for Democrats in Arizona and elsewhere. “First drop in Arizona is looking way better than I expected,” Gallego tweeted at 8:45 p.m. The attendees knew the races would get closer. “These races, they’re going to be tight. We know that,” Raquel Terán, chair of the Arizona Democratic Party, told the crowd. The question many people wondered: How long would the leads hold? No Media Circus to Be Found By some estimates, more than 300 jour- nalists attended the Arizona GOP election night party. The relationship is symbiotic in a sense: Major national columnists got lurid dispatches from the event, and the politicians pointed fingers at the “fake news” in the back of the room. At the Renaissance, the media circus was wholly absent. Various TV channels were stationed at the back of the room, and reporters mingled in the crowd, but there were fewer journalists than at the Republican soiree. The Democrats, it seemed, were judged to be far less of a spectacle. Still, the relationship between Democrats and the press was a little frosty at the party. Gallego, in his animated speech later in the night, called out the media for its coverage of the Arizona races, and the “red tsunami” that Lake and other Republican contenders promised was arriving. He frequently borrowed former Katya Schwenk President Barack Obama’s 2008 “yes we can” campaign slogan, and promised a blue victory. “When the pundits, and when every journalist, thought that Arizona would turn red in 2022, we said nah,” he told the cheering crowd. “We’re the Arizona Democratic Party, and yes we can.” Democrats hoped for an underdog narrative to counter the Republicans’ spec- tacle. “The Republican candidates may have been catering to the extremists and sharing the stage with Steve Bannon,” Terán said. “But what we were doing was knocking on doors and connecting with voters.” Dems Focus on Democracy If there was a clear narrative to be gleaned from candidates who spoke during the election night event, it was democracy. None of the candidates focused on the economy, climate, or immigration. Reproductive rights was hardly mentioned at the victory party despite its prominence in the election. “Every single vote matters, and every single vote counts equally,” Hobbs told the crowd. She bashed Lake — “my opponent” — for “sowing doubt and confusion throughout this campaign.” Fontes, who spoke shortly after Hobbs, offered a similar message. “Let us celebrate democracy,” he said. “Let us also remember that regardless of the results, we have good people working right now all across Arizona to make sure that we preserve and protect democracy.” The narrative ran counter to that of the Republicans, who have pushed claims of voter fraud throughout the race and continued that at their election party on Tuesday. Widespread issues with Maricopa County’s ballot tabulators on Election Day only deepened the distrust many GOP voters felt in their elections. Voting rights were indeed top of mind for some Democratic voters on Tuesday. Katie Hobbs told Democrats that “we are feeling good” about early election results. Some who spoke to New Times said they turned out to oppose GOP propositions that would impact ballot initiatives and voting. Candidates echoed this concern, at least vaguely — and urged patience as the results rolled in. “I know that we’re all eager to find out who won these incredibly impor- tant races,” Hobbs said. “But we need to be patient and wait for every single vote to be counted.” Republicans Hosted a Crappy High School Prom It was supposed to be a massive cele- bration. It ended up more like a crappy high school prom. With booze. Arizona Republicans from the top of the ticket to the bottom united at a posh Scottsdale resort to celebrate a collective victory that never materialized. When the evening came to a premature end, a clump of patriotic balloons was still corralled in a giant net on the ceiling. Republican wins never materialized, and the string to set the balloons loose was never tugged. Republicans gathered at the Scottsdale Resort at McCormick Ranch, a choice that meant sacrificing logistics in favor of clout. Parking lots at the resort were full hours before the event was set to start. Even media arriving 90 minutes early were turned away, as a hotel employee dressed in a snappy three-piece suit stood in the middle of the road and apologized profusely: “I’m so sorry. We were supposed to have enough media parking.” McLarens and Lamborghinis comprised the valet queue, likely owned by VIP ticketholders who shelled out $1,000 a pop for a better seat to watch Kari Lake, the GOP contender for governor, delivered her brief half-concession speech. The people who paid just $20 for general — KATYA SCHWENK >> p 11 9 phoenixnewtimes.com | CONTENTS | FEEDBACK | OPINION | NEWS | FEATURE | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | FILM | CAFE | MUSIC | PHOENIX NEW TIMES NOV 17TH–NOV 23RD, 2022
