Arizona House of Representatives District 27 candidate surveys, 2022

Elections in Arizona, 2022

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This article shows responses from candidates in the 2022 election for Arizona House of Representatives District 27 who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.

• Click here to see candidates and election results.
• Click here to see Candidate Connection survey responses.

Candidates and election results

General election

General election for Arizona House of Representatives District 27 (2 seats)

Incumbent Ben Toma and incumbent Kevin Payne defeated Don Kissinger in the general election for Arizona House of Representatives District 27 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Ben Toma (R)	34.6	40,249
✔		Kevin Payne (R)	34.6	40,240
		Don Kissinger (D)	30.8	35,839

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 116,328
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. The section below shows responses from candidates in this race who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Survey responses from candidates in this race

Click on a candidate's name to visit their Ballotpedia page.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Don Kissinger (D)

I am pro choice and supportive of federal and state constitutional amendments to ensure reproductive freedom.

I support public education and would support improved oversight of charter or private schools receiving public money.

I believe Arizona elections have been and continue to be free and fair. Those stating otherwise are simply dishonest.

Kevin Payne (R)

I'm a constitutional conservative they will uphold both the Arizona and the US constitution

I'm an advocate of public safety to include correctional, police police and firefighters

I believe in backpack funding for for our students where the money follows the child to whatever school ever school they attend. This includes public district, public charter, private and home schools.

Ben Toma (R)

Economy, Small Government, & Low and Fair Taxes: I believe the best way to grow the economy and recover from this downturn is to get the government out of the way. Regulations that hinder growth need to be repealed, and government budgets must be scrutinized so we can trim bloat and reduce taxes. Business owners will invest their capital to expand and create jobs if they can keep more of their hard-earned money and have less red tape to deal with. My record proves it: I designed and passed the largest tax cut in state history in 2021.

Pro-life & Pro-school Choice: I’m pro-life. It’s a shame to see the liberal media hype up certain kinds of violence while completely ignoring the thousands of lives lost each day due to abortion. Regarding education, the best thing we can do for Arizona children is to give them options where to go to school. I fully support school choice. I believe competition in education is the #1 way to increase the quality of our education system and to see that our best teachers make the salaries they deserve. Throwing more and more taxpayer dollars at education without true reform isn’t the answer. The system needs fixing.

Pro Law Enforcement & 2nd Amendment: I fully support our Constitutional right to bear arms. The freedom to defend oneself is a necessary and practical freedom, especially during this time of riots and pushes to de-fund police departments. I have and will continue to oppose all efforts to curb our freedom to own and operate firearms. Further, I think it’s insane to push for de-funding the police. The vast majority of police officers are great people who try their absolute best to keep us safe while fairly enforcing the law. I will always support our law enforcement community and their efforts to keep our communities safe.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Don Kissinger (D)

Arizona’s looming water crisis is what I consider to be the most significant issue we face. The time to act is now. We can’t afford to wait until our aquifers are depleted and the reservoirs behind Hoover and Glen Canyon dams have been reduced to levels that no longer support energy production. I believe this problem is solvable but we need to begin implementing realistic conservation and supply enhancement measures as soon as possible.

Kevin Payne (R)

Public safety, water, transportation and education are my top priorities. As the current public safety chairman we tackled pay for DPS and retirement accounts for police and correctional personnel.

Ben Toma (R)

I'm passionate about good policy regardless of the area. I've been blessed to get big wins in cutting the income tax (with the AZ flat tax), simplifying the tax code (the remote seller a.k.a. "Wayfair" reform), universal backpack funding (the ESA expansion to all AZ families), religious freedom (the "Religion is Essential" bill), and the 2nd chance record sealing bill in the criminal justice space (with support from law enforcement). Further, the budget we just passed include $560+ million to secure our borders because the Feds refuse to do their job, included $1+ billion to pay off debt, $1+ billion for water, and $1+ billion in strategic infrastructure investments. No matter how difficult the subject, or limited the chance of success, I will continue to work on common sense reforms until they pass because they are good for all AZ residents.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

Kevin Payne (R)

Republican platform

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Kevin Payne (R)

The art of negotiation but never giving up your personal principles.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Kevin Payne (R)

Follow constitution and the law. Don't promise things you can't deliver and always stay true to your word.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

Kevin Payne (R)

When I was 10 years old the US landed a man on the moon.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

Kevin Payne (R)

At 12 years old I was a paperboy for the Arizona Republic. I did this for several years leaving after one of my customers offered me a higher paying job. Being a paperboy was a great experience. You sign up your customers, order and pay for papers, deliver papers and collect payment for the papers. It teaches responsibility because you're basically running your own business.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Kevin Payne (R)

Lord of the Rings. Great story.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Kevin Payne (R)

Against the wind...Bob Segar.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and state legislature?

Kevin Payne (R)

They need to be able to talk. Can't be one with governor doing all the talking. Must go both ways with governor talking AND listening.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Kevin Payne (R)

Water, public safety and education.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

Kevin Payne (R)

Yes, it's hard to hit the ground running if you don't know how to do it.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

Kevin Payne (R)

Yes. Relationships help build open and honest communication.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Kevin Payne (R)

Legislative input.

If you are a current legislator, what appealed to you about your current committees?

Kevin Payne (R)

Loved being chairman of the Public Safety committee. Serve on transportation committee and learned a great deal about how it is funded and where we need the most work.

Is there a particular legislator, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

Kevin Payne (R)

No

Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?

Kevin Payne (R)

No

Should the legislature oversee or grant the use of emergency powers?

Kevin Payne (R)

Oversee. The governor is not King.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Kevin Payne (R)

Yes as long as you don't compromise your principles.

See also

More about these elections:

• Arizona House of Representatives elections, 2022

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