Election 2024: Chandler, Gilbert among Phoenix-area cities with council races

Voters throughout the East Valley are headed to the polls Tuesday to choose who will lead their communities and determine the fate of ballot measures ranging from new community growth plans to substantial increases in city spending.

The East Valley's 2024 election includes everything from mayoral contests in Fountain Hills and Paradise Valley where sitting officials are challenging each other for the top spot, to a measure that would boost Gilbert's spending power for the first time since 1998.

The Arizona Republic broke down what's on the ballot in each East Valley community. Our comprehensive voter guide has a complete rundown of all the candidates and what was at stake in each race.

Election 2024: See Arizona election results | Live coverage throughout Election Day

Chandler's ticket: one open City Council seat

Chandler voters are deciding who will fill the one City Council seat that was not filled in July's primary election, when Vice Mayor OD Harris and political newcomer Jennifer Hawkins secured enough votes to avoid a runoff.

The two candidates vying for the remaining council seat are incumbent City Councilmember Christine Ellis and 20-year-old challenger Joseph Yang .

Ellis was first elected to City Council in 2020 and is seeking a second term. She is a Haitian native who immigrated to the United States when she was 17. She is a registered nurse who owns an assisted living home business in the East Valley.

Yang is a political newcomer who has served on numerous public safety-focused boards and organizations, including Chandler's Citizens' Panel of Review for Police Complaints and Use of Force. He is also the CEO of a model car company called 153AZ that makes model police cars.

The race has been low-key as both candidates are registered Republicans who generally have similar stances on city issues. For voters, the contest is largely a decision about who they think can more effectively implement those policies.

Gilbert voters choose new councilmember and decide on spending

Gilbert voters will also decide on a new town council member. The two candidates, Aaron Accurso and Kenny Buckland , advanced to a November run-off after neither outright won the seat in the August primary.

Accurso has lived in Gilbert for 17 years and is a devout Catholic. He works as a construction manager for a local pool company.

Buckland is a former commander of the Gilbert Police Department and retired from the town in 2016. He previously owned a small business and currently works as a sales director for a consulting company.

The Gilbert Town Council and its politics have caused a rift between the elected officials and its residents over the past two years. It stems from infighting among the council members and the uncovering of the Gilbert Goons , who are a gang of teenagers and young adults that engaged in a string of random assaults.

The run-off between the two candidates has remained civil and largely quiet.

The two amassed several different endorsements. Accurso got support from Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb , State Senate President Warren Peterson and the Republican Liberty Caucus of Arizona.

Buckland received support from Council members Yung Koprowski, Kathy Tilque and Maricopa County assessor and former town council member Eddie Cook . He also received an endorsement from the Gilbert Chamber of Commerce.

The town has also posed two propositions to voters related to spending .

Proposition 497 asked voters to approve a permanent adjustment to the 1980 state-imposed expenditure base limit by $1.5 million. Gilbert last adjusted the spending cap in 1998.

Proposition 498 asked voters to exclude capital improvement projects from the expenditure limit including streets, water and sewer infrastructure parks and all other capital projects.

Gilbert voters: Here's the propositions on the 2024 ballot and their meaning

Carefree voters deciding fate of general plan

Carefree has only one town-specific ballot item on today's ticket, called Proposition 493. The measure gives voters the power to decide whether to approve an updated version of the town's General Plan.

The plan is a long-term planning strategy that broadly spells out the community's vision for future growth, its transportation network, parks, civic buildings, public art, environmental sustainability and economic development. State law requires that towns have to update the plan every decade.

One of the biggest changes in the town's proposed General Plan is a special planning area, or SPA, on both the northeast corner of Carefree Highway and Cave Creek Road, and the northwest corner of Carefree Highway and Tom Darlington Drive.

The SPA would allow certain types of commercial development in those areas to help the town generate sales tax revenue ahead of an expected downturn in cash flow. But it has faced pushback from some residents and Town Council candidates who are concerned about preserving the area's natural landscape.

Fountain Hills will choose a mayor and two council members

Fountain Hills voters will elect a mayor and choose between four Town Council candidates vying for two open seats.

Incumbent Mayor Ginny Dickey is hoping to retain her seat against challenger and current Town Council Member Gerry Friedel. The latter is linked to a political action committee that helped make the 2022 election one of the nastiest and most heated in the town's recent history , while the former was a prime target of that PAC.

Dickey was first elected Fountain Hills mayor in 2018. Prior to her retirement, she was an Arizona Senate staffer, part-time teacher, bookkeeper, school board member, and assistant director of the Department of Environmental Quality.

Friedel's career includes nearly 22 years as a loan officer and another 17 years as a financial planner.

The race for two open Town Council seats is between three political newcomers and one incumbent. Specifically, the council contenders include:

Paradise Valley decides what council member to promote to mayor's seat

Paradise Valley voters are electing one of two sitting Town Council members to be the community's new mayor. The top vote-getter will lead the town on key issues ranging from regulating unruly short-term rentals to preserving quality of life over the next four years.

The contenders are Vice Mayor Mark Stanton and Town Councilmember Anna Thomasson.

Stanton is the founder of a communications firm and the president and CEO of the Scottsdale Area Chamber of Commerce. He is currently serving his third elected term on the council.

Thomasson was elected to the council in 2019 and 2023. She had a 35-year career in corporate finance and human resources consulting Fortune 500 companies.

The deadline to register to vote to be able to participate in the election was Oct. 7. Voters can check their status on Maricopa County's website . Those who choose to vote by mail can still drop a ballot off at a drop-off location or voting location by Nov. 5. Polls close at 7 p.m.

The county elections office doesn't expect to have final unofficial results for at least 10 days but will be periodically updating early results. The first batch is expected one hour after polls close.

This will be updated as election results come in.