Phoenix City Council election: Unofficial results show Ansari, incumbent Stark ahead in runoff races
Phoenix city skyline at midday (file)
PHOENIX - Elections officials in Phoenix have released unofficial results from two city council runoff elections.
According to results, voters residing in Phoenix City Councils Districts three and seven had to select a city council member in a runoff election.
According to a city council district map on the City of Phoenix's website, District 3 covers portions of Phoenix near Piestewa Peak, while District 7 covers portions of Downtown Phoenix, Maryvale, and Southwest Phoenix.
According to unofficial results as of 9:20 p.m. on March 9, Stark received 21,112 votes, or 68.40% of the votes, in the District 3 runoff race. In her re-election bid, Stark was facing a challenge from Nicole Garcia.
Unofficial results also show that in District 7, Yassamin Ansari received 7,366 votes, or 58.29% of the votes cast, in that district's runoff race. Ansari was running against Cinthia Estela for the seat.
Why were runoff elections needed?
According to city officials in January, runoff elections were required in the two districts because no candidates won a majority of all votes cast, defined as 50% plus one vote, during the November 2020 election.
Official results from the November 2020 election show Stark and Estela having received the most votes in Districts 3 and 7, respectively.
Mayor Gallego congratulates Ansari, Stark
In a tweet made on the night of March 9, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego offered congratulated Stark on her re-election, as well as congratulating Ansari, calling her councilwoman-elect.
On her campaign website, Ansari noted that she is endorsed by Mayor Gallego, as well as Congressman Greg Stanton, who served as Phoenix's mayor before his successful run for Congress.
Unofficial results: 'Yes' votes for City Charter amendments ahead in Goodyear
Phoenix was not the only city to hold an election on March 9. In Goodyear, an all-mail special election was held.
In that election, voters have to decide on 10 amendments to the city charter. The amendments range from changes to the city council, the city manager's office, and various other technical and grammatical changes to the charter.
Unofficial results from the Maricopa County Elections Department show the 'yes' votes for all 10 amendments are ahead. Voter turnout is only 15.61%.
Online: Phoenix.gov/Results