Michael Muscato

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Michael Muscato

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 3, 2020

Personal

Birthplace

Phoenix, Ariz.

Religion

Christian

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

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Michael Muscato (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Arizona's 8th Congressional District. He lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.

Muscato completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. Click here to read the survey answers.

Muscato was a 2016 Democratic candidate for District 22 of the Arizona State Senate.

Elections

2020

See also: Arizona's 8th Congressional District election, 2020

Arizona's 8th Congressional District election, 2020 (August 4 Democratic primary)

Arizona's 8th Congressional District election, 2020 (August 4 Republican primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Arizona District 8

Incumbent Debbie Lesko defeated Michael Muscato and Taliban Hendrix in the general election for U.S. House Arizona District 8 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Debbie Lesko (R)	59.6	251,633
		Michael Muscato (D)	40.4	170,816
	Submit photo	Taliban Hendrix (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	18

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 422,467
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Ryan Risselman (R)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Arizona District 8

Michael Muscato defeated Bob Olsen, Bob Musselwhite, and Kyle Martin in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Arizona District 8 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Muscato	54.4	35,923
		Bob Olsen	31.1	20,547
		Bob Musselwhite	14.5	9,578
	Submit photo	Kyle Martin (Write-in)	0.1	45

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 66,093
= 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.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Arizona District 8

Incumbent Debbie Lesko advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Arizona District 8 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Debbie Lesko	100.0	105,758

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 105,758
= 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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Jimmy Rodriguez (R)

2016

See also: Arizona State Senate elections, 2016

Elections for the Arizona State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 30, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 1, 2016.

Incumbent Judy Burges defeated Michael Muscato in the Arizona State Senate District 22 general election.

Arizona State Senate, District 22 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Judy Burges Incumbent	65.04%	71,863
	Democratic	Michael Muscato	34.96%	38,620
Total Votes				110,483
Source: Arizona Secretary of State

Michael Muscato ran unopposed in the Arizona State Senate District 22 Democratic Primary.

Arizona State Senate, District 22 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Democratic	Michael Muscato  (unopposed)

Incumbent Judy Burges ran unopposed in the Arizona State Senate District 22 Republican Primary.

Arizona State Senate, District 22 Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Republican	Judy Burges Incumbent (unopposed)

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Michael Muscato completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Muscato's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

My name is Michael Muscato. The three words I live by are: family, duty, country I am running for Congress in the district I'm born and raised in. I am the father of two amazing little boys, husband to superwoman, the son of two retired Arizona public school teachers, brother to a US Army Captain, and Uncle to the sweetest little girl. I was drafted by the New York Yankees and played a few seasons of professional baseball. I then began a career as a video engineer and director for major music artists on their world concert tours. Traveling the world many times over gave me an interesting perspective on life, morality, and humanity. I came home after years of traveling and have owned my own small business for more than 6 years while maintaining my professional career in the entertainment industry. I am a doer not a complainer. My platform is based on representing the people of CD8 and solving the problems all of us as American's need solutions to. I believe in an efficient and effective government. I believe our values, our hometown, and our country are always worth fighting for.

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?

• Healthcare is a basic human right. It should be made more affordable, provide 100% coverage, and protect those with pre-exisiting conditions
• Immigration reform requires leaders who want to fix it rather than use it as an issue for political gain. We can start by revising our visa system, upgrading our ports of entry and adequately funding our border patrol, case officers, judges, and healthcare officials to prevent human/drug trafficking and create fair labor practices.
• Our small businesses, the hard working American family, our children deserve leaders whose policies promote opportunity and growth through a world class systems in education, heatlhcare, transportation/infrastructure, and energy/environment.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Owning a gun is not exclusive to a political party. As a gun owner I am passionate about protecting our 2nd amendment rights. As a father and responsible gun owner I realize that today's society calls for common sense safety reforms which proactively prevent threats without infringing upon the 2A. Our lives and that of our children are worth it.

As a business owner, husband, father, friend and world traveler to a variety of cultures and regions of the world, I am passionate about equal rights, be them having to do with equal pay, voting, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or healthcare. Equality means equality.

I'm also passionate about protecting our privacy as citizens, our healthcare, immigration, climate/environment, our economy, tax policy, supreme court and judicial system in general, drug and mental health issues, secondary education and student loans, pensions and retirement protections, election security, campaign finance transparency, private prison industry, our military and wars overseas, and our transportation/infrastructure.

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

I look up to my parents, both now retired Arizona public school teachers. My entire life they worked multiple jobs to support my brother and I. They did it so we could have a better life and more opportunity than they had. It's a work ethic I've carried over into my own life and approach as a husband and father.

I also look up to my little brother. He continues to serve our country as a member of the US Army. Many of the proudest moments of my life have come from the joy of his successes following his dreams and achieving his goals.

I look up to my wife. In my family our women stand right beside us. Her strength, her compassion, her ability to handle me and our two boys...is nothing shy of inspiring.

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

"Outliers" by Malcom Gladwell

It will help explain why I am going to make history in Arizona's 8th district come November 2020

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

Morality - Represent our nations values on humanity, ethics, and defend our Constitution

Integrity - to remain true to ones self regardless of celebrity and political or financial pressures/incentives
Duty - The duty to ones Family must always come first as should the duty to our country

Honor - Our representatives carry our hopes, dreams, and lives in their hands. This should never be taken for granted

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

Determination to provide my hometown with representation regardless of party affiliation

Dedication and a work ethic that is unmatched.

The ability to recognize problems and provide thoughtful solutions

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

To represent the voices, values, and votes of their constituents.

Transparency - in who funds their campaigns, in who they are as people, and whose interests they represent

Accountability - To speak openly, freely, and without pre-screening questions from constituents

What legacy would you like to leave?

When I take my last breathe I want to to be able to look my children in my eyes knowing I spent every day fighting for them and the future of their children.

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

The first event I remember watching was when the Berlin Wall came down. I was five years old.
I was a senior in high school when the towers fell Sep 11, 2001.

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

My first full-time job was as a professional baseball player. I played a couple seasons of professional baseball.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Whatever book I read my children. Moments I'll never get back, so I soak up each and every single one.

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

King Arthur

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

"Made for this" by Carrollton

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

Like most everyone, I've been working as hard as I can for as long as I can remember. I've earned everything I have and I'm ok with that. The struggle is part of the fun of the journey. I simply want to make our lives better in every way I can

What qualities does the U.S. House of Representatives possess that makes it unique as an institution?

The U.S House of Representatives possesses the ability to provide a guardian like oversight over their constituents, the co-equal branches of government as a check and balance, and has the ability to make our lives better across the country through well thought out policy and legislation.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

I believe that experience in government and politics has proven for those who have been in office now for years to be part of the problem rather than the solution. Life experience is unique to each individual. My experience as a world traveler, a business owner, a professional athlete, and in the highly competitive and demanding entertainment industry provides me with a very unique ability to work together with people of all walks of life. As a father and small business owner the decisions I make directly effect my life, my business, and my children's futures. We need more elected officials with skin in the game, the ability to think for themselves rather than act as talking heads for political parties or special interests, and people who have a vision for the future and a plan to get us there.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

Our greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade are:

1) healthcare reform
2) climate/environment
3) Political and Corporate corruption
4) Immigration reform

5) China, Russia, and our ability to compete in the competitive global economy

If you are not a current representative, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

Judiciary Committee

Homeland Security
Energy and Commerce
Education and Labor
Transportation and Infrastructure
Small Business
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
Armed Services
Agriculture
Appropriations
Science Space and Technology

to name a few

Do you believe that two years is the right term length for representatives?

I believe that a representatives job is to represent all of their constituents best interests. Whatever their term is they should serve those interests at all times. Should they fail to do so, they should be removed. I also believe representatives should be required to hold public appearances for their constituents via open to the public, free, and unscreened question town halls. Failure to engage with constituents and/or only meeting with political party affiliated clubs and voters allows for continued division and lack of transparency and accountability.

What are your thoughts on term limits?

We have term limits. They are called elections. If representatives fail to do their jobs, they should be voted out. I also believe that elected officials who shut down the government should not be eligible for re-election nor receive pay during the shut down.

If you are not currently a member of your party’s leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives, would you be interested in joining the leadership? If so, in what role?

My focus is on representing my hometown. Once elected if there are ways to improve upon how I can help, I will gladly step up to do so.

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

I'm going to Michael Muscato. I'm going to make my country, my family, and my parents proud.

Both sitting representatives and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

Each event I attend I come across people telling me their stories about their healthcare bills and prescription costs. Whether it's people telling me they would be dead without pre-existing condition protections, parents of children who were born with conditions dependent on expensive treatments, the business owner trying to hire good employees but cant afford benefits to retain them, or the average family struggling to simply cover the cost to insure themselves and their children. Each and every story is humbling, inspiring, personal, and makes me even more determined to see this mission through.

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.

See also

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Footnotes

[show]

Arizona's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Ruben Gallego (D)

Mark Kelly (D)

Representatives

District 1

David Schweikert (R)

District 2

Eli Crane (R)

District 3

Yassamin Ansari (D)

District 4

Greg Stanton (D)

District 5

Andy Biggs (R)

District 6

Juan Ciscomani (R)

District 7

Vacant

District 8

Abraham Hamadeh (R)

District 9

Paul Gosar (R)

Republican Party (6)

Democratic Party (4)

Vacancies (1)