John Backer

John Backer (Republican Party) ran for election to the Pima County Board of Supervisors to represent District 2 in Arizona. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Backer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

John Backer was born in Jefferson City, Tennessee. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1984 to 1988. He earned an associate degree from Pima Community College in 1989, a bachelor's degree from Tusculum University in 2005, and a graduate degree from the University of Phoenix in 2007. His professional experience includes working in the technology industry and as a licensed realtor. He has been affiliated with the American Legion.^[1]^[2]

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2

Incumbent Matt Heinz defeated John Backer in the general election for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2 on November 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Matt Heinz (D)	61.7	46,248
	John Backer (R)	38.1	28,542
	Other/Write-in votes	0.2	123

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 74,913
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2

Incumbent Matt Heinz advanced from the Democratic primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2 on July 30, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Matt Heinz	99.3	15,122
	Other/Write-in votes	0.7	113

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 15,235
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2

John Backer defeated Beatrice Cory Stephens in the Republican primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2 on July 30, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		John Backer	61.1	5,043
	Submit photo	Beatrice Cory Stephens	38.0	3,138
		Other/Write-in votes	0.9	71

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 8,252
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Backer in this election.

2020

General election

General election for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4

Incumbent Steve Christy defeated Steve Diamond in the general election for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Steve Christy (R)	54.4	69,292
	Submit photo	Steve Diamond (D)	45.4	57,813
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	173

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 127,278
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4

Steve Diamond advanced from the Democratic primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Steve Diamond	99.4	29,212
		Other/Write-in votes	0.6	169

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 29,381
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4

Incumbent Steve Christy defeated John Backer in the Republican primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Steve Christy	64.2	19,719
		John Backer	35.4	10,869
		Other/Write-in votes	0.4	116

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 30,704
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Green primary election

No Green Party candidates filed for this race. William Peterson ran as a write-in and received 11 votes. Write-in candidates were required to receive at least 104 votes to make the general election ballot.^[3]

Endorsements

To view Backer's endorsements in the 2020 election, please click here.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

John Backer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Backer's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I'm an Air Force Veteran (A-10 Electrician) who has spent more than 30 years in the technology industry. Over the past 15 years, I have served customers in law enforcement and intelligence analysts. My entire career has been about solving problems.

I have been married for 21 years, and we have a blended family of 5 grown children and are proud grandparents of 6 grandchildren.

Over the past 8 years, I have served on the town of Sahuarita Planning and Zoning commission - currently the chairman of the commission. Additionally, I served a 4 year term on the Pima county District 4 board of adjustments.

Additional Community Involvement:

Cub Master for pack 328 for 4 years
Assistant Cub Master for 1 year
Recreation league sports coach for soccer, basketball, and volleyball
Junior Achievement – taught elementary students the JA curriculum
Habitat for Humanity – volunteered to help build homes
Neighborhood Watch Co-Coordinator for 3 years – Madera Highlands
HOA advisory committee member for 1 year – Madera Highlands

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?

The most sacred responsibility of government is to protect their citizens and businesses. According to an article by the Goldwater Institute, “Violent crime is skyrocketing in Pima County, but officials are too busy planning to release lawbreakers onto the streets to actually do anything about it.” To bring crime under control, we must replace the current county supervisors, who have clearly demonstrated that they don’t value the safety of our citizens by consistently refusing to allocate adequate resources to law enforcement. The Pima County COVID masking and vaccination policies lead to an incredible number of law enforcement and corrections officers leaving their positions – leading to unsustainable level of overtime to fill the gap.
Fiscal Responsibility & Transparency - It is critical to manage the county spending responsibly to minimize the impact on our struggling citizens. Part of managing the County’s budget should involve constantly looking for opportunities to save money. The county should start with the basic services of public safety, roads and infrastructure, and parks. Adopting a zero-based budgeting approach facilitates justifying our budgets every fiscal year. Despite including inflation buffers in the annual budget, Pima County is in a “budget crisis,” according to the County Administrator. We don't need our county government to do everything, but what they do should be done well. Everything done for residents must be done transparently.
Economic Development - The current economic development strategy is to leverage incentives to attract businesses, but relying on incentives alone is not a viable economic development strategy.

The best way to keep existing businesses and attract new businesses to Pima County is to, first and foremost, provide the services that all taxpayers expect. Businesses and individuals want to live in an area where their families are safe, parks are clean and welcoming, roads are well maintained, and every drop of value is squeezed out of the property taxes paid.

Incentives to businesses have their place, but incentives must be tied to short and mid-term goals and must make sense financially to our taxpayers.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am passionate about providing citizens with the services they need and expect (public safety, roads/infrastructure, and parks/recreation) which, in turn, will help to attract employment opportunities to help lift Pima county residents out of poverty - providing opportunities and hope for the future.

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

The book "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie - this timeless book provides lessons and 30 principles on how people should engage other individuals to have an increased chance to bring someone with an opposing view to their way of thinking.

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

Transparency, honesty, and integrity are the most important characteristics for an elected official. If an elected official is doing things to help the citizens they serve, the elected official should be exited to share what they have done. If an elected official tends to work in the shadows and isn't transparent, the assumption can only be they don't want the citizens to learn what is being done "to them".

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

First and foremost, a board of supervisor member must ask questions and actively listen to fully understand what is being considered and its impact to the citizens of Pima County. Everyone elected to this office must provide for public safety through policies and allocating adequate tax dollars to provide for law enforcement and other first responders. Someone elected to this office must also strive to create a tax levy which is the minimum required to provide for the services Pima county resident expect - letting citizens keep as much of their hard earned income as possible. Finally, everything being done on behalf and to better Pima county for everyone should be done transparently.

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

I was young, but I remember watching the moon landing on a snowy black and white television. I was 4 years old at the time.

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

My first job was being an aircraft electrician in the United States Air Force - on active duty for a 4 year enlistment followed by 3 years in the Arizona Air National Guard.

What is your favorite book? Why?

"How to Win Friends and Influence People" - reading that book changed my life.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Town of Sahuarita Mayor - Tom Murphy, and two members of the Sahuarita Town Council - Bill Bracco and Diane Priolo. Additional endorsements include former law enforcement officers, military veterans, a former secret service agent, and some people who have worked with me or known me for several years.

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

In Pima county, financial transparency and government accountability has not existed for a long time. There is a laundry list of "investments" Pima county has made - one comes to mind that was found to violate the gift clause . Financial transparency and government accountability is the basis for serving as a board of supervisor member.

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.

2020

John Backer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Backer's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I'm an Air Force veteran who came to Pima county July 4, 1984 to serve at Davis-Monthan AFB as an electrician on the A-10 aircraft. After spending a total of 7 years in active duty and air national guard, a started a career in technology which spanned more than 30 years. Over the last 10 years I have worked for IBM for a product which provided visual analytics which helped our clients make sense out of large amounts of data. The solution is used by law enforcement, intelligence officers, and commercial clients to combat terrorism, and find fraud, waste and abuse. I've spent a career solving problems and it all starts with listening, fully understanding an issue and working either individually or as a member of a team to solve the problems plaguing my clients.

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?

We are taxed too much - Pima county is the highest taxed county in Arizona
We don't get good value for the taxes we pay - 70% or higher failed and poor roads.
We don't have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem. Pima county must focus on those services residents demand.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Tax policy. With 20% of Pima county living in poverty - it is clear that what we have been doing isn't working. Our tax policy places an even higher burden on small and mid-sized companies - driving them away to other counties or states. When those businesses are driven away so are the opportunities the companies would provide to lift those living in poverty to a brighter future. The use of Certificates of Participation (COPs) are fundamentally wrong because it is a non-voter approved debt instrument which still places the residents of Pima county in debt - taxation without representation of sorts.

What qualities does this office possess that makes it a unique and important part of the state government and legal system?

Guiding policy for Pima County along with determining the annual budget for over 1,000,000 residents of Pima county.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

There are so many historical figures I look up to - it is difficult to choose just one, but I would say President Lincoln. Other than his obvious place in history, he faced much adversity in his personal life and still achieved great things before his death. His example should give hope to people who are struggling today, tomorrow and beyond.

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

How to Win Friends and Influence People - a very hold book which provides a timeless deep dive into the golden rule. The book provides a powerful guide to help work with members of other political parties to craft solutions to the problems we face.

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

Integrity, Transparency, Honesty to name a few.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

Integrity, Transparency, and Honesty.

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

Only spend the minimum taxes required to provide the services residents demand and stay out of the way of opportunities which help raise all ships.

What legacy would you like to leave?

Like most others - I want to leave this world better than I found it, but specially for Pima county - show we can reduce the tax burden on residents and businesses while still providing the services we all demand - by fostering opportunities to lift Pima County Residents out of poverty and beyond.

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

Landing on the moon - I was young, but I remember watching the snowy image on our black and white TV.

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

Aircraft electrician in the Air Force working on A-10s. 4 years.

What is your favorite book? Why?

How to Win Friends and Influence People - reading this book changed the course of my life.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Luke Skywalker

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

Van Halen - Jump

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

In my youth my parents got divorced - the result was my father and myself going hungry for days at a time while being virtually homeless. This struggle provided me a great opportunity to have empathy for the segment of our population which are struggling.

Are there any little-known powers or responsibilities held by this office that you believe more people should be aware of?

The County Administrator is supposed to answer to the board of supervisors; however, it frequently appears the county administrator is calling the shots...

Do you believe that it's beneficial for holders of this office to have previous experience in government or politics?

A wide array of experience is important, but government or political experience is not required. In fact, most residents prefer to elect someone most like them - someone how has worked in the private sector and understands what it means to be on the receiving end of almost constant attempts to raise our taxes...

What kind of skills or expertise do you believe would be the most helpful for the holders of this office to possess?

Problem solving ability - the ability to listen, understand, and act to resolve problems faced by our residents for the betterment of Pima county.

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.

External links

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Candidate

Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2

Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 21, 2020
↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 28, 2024
↑ Pima.gov, "Partisan Signature Requirements - Primary Election - August 4, 2020," accessed September 24, 2020

[bio2020-1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 21, 2020

[2] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 28, 2024

[3] Pima.gov, "Partisan Signature Requirements - Primary Election - August 4, 2020," accessed September 24, 2020

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John Backer

Contents

Biography

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 2

Endorsements

2020

General election

General election for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Pima County Board of Supervisors District 4

Green primary election

Endorsements

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

2020

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

2025 Elections

2026 Elections

2024 Election analysis

Trending

Public Policy

Information for candidates

Get Engaged

Services

Additional analysis

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