Key Points:
A website that published public records released photos of lieutenant governor candidate John Giles committing traffic violations
Records show that Giles had been cited for multiple speeding and red-light infractions while mayor or councilman in Mesa
Giles said the focus on his driving record is nothing but politics
PHOENIX — The Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor is brushing aside multiple speeding tickets he got while mayor of Mesa.
“I’ve lived in Arizona my entire life, and we’ve all seen that camera flash and realized we were going a little too fast,” John Giles said in prepared comments Thursday. He said the publicity about the citations he incurred in the city where he presided — mainly in 2021 and 2022, though there is a speeding ticket from just this past February — is strictly political.
The available court documents also show nothing about how much over the speed limit he was clocked.
But Giles, tapped by incumbent Gov. Katie Hobbs as her running mate in her reelection bid, did not address the fact that Mesa also issued two citations for running red lights: one in 2021 at Broadway and Extension roads, and the other in 2023 at University and Mesa drives.
Nor did Giles respond to questions about records from Mesa Municipal Court also showing that all the citations were dismissed — and whether that had anything to do with the fact he was the mayor. The court records provide no reason.
The documents were initially found by FOIAzonaa blog that bills itself as “increasing transparency in Arizona through public records research,” with most of the recent reports being about activities of Democrats.
FOIAzona posted enforcement-camera photos from the 2021 and 2023 incidents showing not just the vehicle that ran the red lights, but also Giles behind the wheel.
Giles did not respond to both voice messages and texts sent to his cell phone seeking information about those red-light offenses.
In the prepared statement he provided Thursday, Giles framed the question of his driving record as political.
“The fact that the other side wants to talk about a handful of traffic tickets the week early voting starts shows how out of touch they are with what Arizonans are facing,” he said.
A search of a statewide database produced no record of traffic citations for Republican lieutenant governor nominee Sine Kerr. But her campaign spokesman said he understands Kerr received a photo radar speeding ticket last year in Scottsdale and paid the fine. He did not know how fast she was going.
This is the first election in Arizona where gubernatorial candidates pick a running mate. That person isn’t separately elected but appears on the same ticket, similar to presidential elections, where voters cast a single vote for the party nominee and running mate.
Hobbs, a Democrat, tapped Giles earlier this year. He had been a Republican but changed his status to independent three months before the governor picked him.
Source: azcapitoltimes.com
