Arizona's 2nd Congressional District elections, 2014

U.S. House, Arizona District 2 General Election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Martha McSally	50%	109,704
	Democratic	Ron Barber Incumbent	49.9%	109,543
	Write-in	Sampson U. Ramirez	0%	56
	Write-in	Sydney Dudikoff	0%	48
Total Votes				219,351
Source: Arizona Secretary of State

2016 → ← 2012

Arizona's 2nd Congressional District

General Election Date November 4, 2014

Primary Date August 26, 2014

November 4 Election Winner: Martha McSally

Incumbent prior to election: Ron Barber

Race Ratings Cook Political Report: Toss Up Sabato's Crystal Ball: Toss Up

Arizona U.S. House Elections District 1 • District 2 • District 3 • District 4 • District 5 • District 6 • District 7 • District 8 • District 9

2014 U.S. Senate Elections

2014 U.S. House Elections

Over six weeks after the general election took place, Martha McSally was finally crowned the victor over incumbent Ron Barber. McSally initially claimed victory in the race following the first count of the votes, but Barber did not concede. A mandatory recount began following the official canvass and certification of votes on December 1. The result of the recount was revealed on December 17. Following the initial vote count, Barber also filed a lawsuit asking a judge to force two counties to count 133 provisional ballots that were previously rejected. His campaign argued that the ballots were wrongly disqualified. However, his request was denied by a Tucson federal judge.

The 2014 race for Arizona's 2nd Congressional District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives featured two candidates who both said they were not afraid to stray from party lines, which was essential in a district that was “roughly one-third Republican, one-third Democratic and one-third independent.”

In a rematch of the 2012 race, Republican Martha McSally challenged incumbent Democrat Ron Barber, who narrowly defeated McSally in 2012 with just 2,454 votes separating the two candidates. The 2012 race was too close to call for over a week after the election took place.

Arizona's 2nd Congressional District was one of Ballotpedia's U.S. House battleground districts in 2014 because the district had nearly even numbers of registered Democrats and Republicans. The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) also targeted Barber as a vulnerable incumbent because of his narrow margin of victory over McSally in 2012. In addition, Republican presidential candidates John McCain and Mitt Romney won the district in 2008 and 2012.

Throughout the campaign, Barber, who voted with the Democratic Party 72.4 percent of the time, touted his independent record and his membership in Congress' bipartisan working group. He said, “I have a strong record of bipartisanship in Congress. One of those examples is the vote that we took on the A-10 to keep the A-10 flying. Three hundred members of the House of Representatives voted for that amendment, and I introduced it with a Republican colleague. ...So for me it’s about going to Congress and not being a partisan. I said it when I ran in 2012 and I’ll say it again because that’s what I believe. There is not R or D behind a good piece of legislation.”

McSally, the first female fighter pilot to fly in combat and the first to command a fighter squadron in combat in U.S. history, argued that her military experience had prepared her to work with both parties, if elected. She said, "I will tell you I served in the military for 26 years. I put on the uniform every single day, and I will tell you that there’s no partisanship in the military. You just get the job done. You have a heart of service and leadership and integrity and excellence and I’ve got that background, in order to serve our country and our community again." McSally also cited her effort to pass a law to overturn a policy requiring service women to wear muslim garb while off base when serving overseas. She continued, "I have shown that I am going to stand up and speak truth to power. I’m going to do the right thing and I’m going to show moral courage even if it comes at a personal cost. And these are values that we don’t have in Congress now."

Barber and McSally accused each other of not being as moderate and bipartisan as each candidate claimed to be. Barber accused McSally of hiding her tea party allegiance to win the election. He said, "We have been hearing about how many times she misspoke in 2012. On issue after issue, all of a sudden, she has a new way of thinking. I welcome some of the changes, because I think they are in the right direction, but I think it's more of a political game than it is reality."

McSally tied Barber to his vote in favor of the Affordable Care Act and to partisan Democrats like Nancy Pelosi. McSally said, "Our current incumbent has shown that he’s going to buckle to party lines. He says he’s independent, but voting with Nancy Pelosi 80 percent of the time is not independence." In a debate held on October 14, Barber responded to McSally's claim explaining that the only Nancy he takes advice from is his wife, Nancy Barber.

Heading into the election, Sabato’s Crystal Ball, The Rothenberg Political Report, The Cook Political Report and Real Clear Politics all rated this race a toss-up.

Candidate Filing Deadline	Primary Election	General Election
May 28, 2014	August 26, 2014	November 4, 2014

Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Arizona utilizes a semi-closed primary system. Unaffiliated voters may choose which party's primary they will vote in, but voters registered with a party can only vote in that party's primary.

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Voter registration: To vote in the primary, voters had to register by July 28, 2014. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 6, 2014.

See also: Arizona elections, 2014

Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was Ron Barber (D), who was first elected in a special election on June 12, 2012.

The 2nd District is located in the southeastern corner of Arizona and includes Cochise County and part of Pima County.

Candidates

General election candidates

Ron Barber

Martha McSally

August 26, 2014, primary results
Democratic Primary

• Ron Barber - Incumbent a

Republican Primary

• Martha McSally a
• Shelley Kais
• Chuck Wooten

Election results

General election

U.S. House, Arizona District 2 General Election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Martha McSally	50%	109,704
	Democratic	Ron Barber Incumbent	49.9%	109,543
	Write-in	Sampson U. Ramirez	0%	56
	Write-in	Sydney Dudikoff	0%	48
Total Votes				219,351
Source: Arizona Secretary of State

Primary election

U.S. House, Arizona District 2 Republican Primary, 2014

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Martha McSally	69.4%	45,492
Chuck Wooten	22.9%	14,995
Shelley Kais	7.8%	5,103
Total Votes		65,590
Source: Arizona Secretary of State

Race background

Vulnerable incumbent

Incumbent Ron Barber was one of seven early targets listed by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) in the 2014 congressional elections. The seven targets aligned perfectly with the seven most Republican districts currently held by Democrats, according to FairVote's partisanship index. Barber's district ranked as the 7th most Republican.

Barber was a member of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Frontline Program. The program was designed to help protect vulnerable Democratic incumbents during the 2014 election cycle.

Debates

Barber and McSally participated in their first debate on October 7, 2014. Gun control was a hot issue during the debate. McSally brought up the controversial ad "Stalker Gap." released by Americans for Responsible Solutions claiming that she "opposed making it harder for stalkers to get a gun," despite being a victim of stalking herself. McSally said in regard to the ad, "We can all agree that we want to minimize and we want to make sure that gun violence obviously is addressed in our communities and we have different ways of talking about that. But the way that this has happened in this campaign has just been disgraceful. There were ads that were run by your allies that were considered vile and nasty by the Arizona Republic. And we repeatedly asked for you to stand up against them. And Mr. Barber, you wouldn't do it -- day after day, you wouldn't do it. They finally took the ad down because it was so horrendous. And you have an opportunity now tonight to denounce that ad and apologize. Do you believe that ad was wrong, Ron?"

Barber responded by saying, "I really want to be really clear with this question, because it's important to me as a survivor of a mass shooting, as someone who believes in the Second Amendment and supports it. And what happened to you, Martha -- what you said happened to you was horrific. It should happen to no woman. I've got two daughters, I've got three granddaughters. I want to make sure that they're protected. I want to make sure that you're protected and every woman is protected. That ad was not run by me, and I'm not going to talk about an ad that I didn't sponsor." He also added that he wanted to expand background checks on gun purchases.

Barber and McSally participated in their second debate on October 14, 2014. The candidates discussed a variety of issues, including Ft. Huachuca and immigration.

When asked about saving jobs at Ft. Huachuca, McSally said, "The fight in D.C. has to be one that's based on credibility, that understands those missions, that understands what those missions bring to our national security."

Barber agreed with McSally saying, "It is the most important economic driver in all of Cochise County. We cannot let that go away, we must work together to save it. This should never be a partisan issue."

McSally argued that Congress and Barber have failed on immigration. She said, "The border is not secure and it is not getting any better so its time not for talk but for action. The strategy is failed."

"I've been working on border security, getting changes made right here in Southern Arizona. My opponent just refuses to recognize that we've made some progress. We need to make more," Barber replied.

"Both candidates say they support moving more Border Patrol agents closer to the actual border," according to KGUN9.com.

Gabby Giffords

Former Rep. Gabby Giffords was a prominent figure in Arizona's 2nd Congressional District race. Giffords and her group, American for Responsible Solutions, unsurprisingly supported Barber. Barber is Giffords’ former district director.

In September, Giffords and American for Responsible Solutions released the ad "Stalker Gap." McSally responded to the ad saying, “For an outside group to tie me to the tragic occurrence of a stalker killing his victim is not only personally offensive, it’s degrading to all women and victims who have experienced this pain. These false and malicious ads are being run by Congressman Barber’s political allies, and for him to remain silent in their wake is damning…He needs to denounce these degrading ads and demand they be pulled down.”

The Arizona Republic called "Stalker Gap" "a nasty piece of work. Demagoguery in heart-rending tones."

Giffords once again became a feature of the race in the NRCC's ad "Follower," the narrator said, “Gabby Giffords fought for border security and voted against Nancy Pelosi. Ron Barber voted for Pelosi and followed Pelosi’s lead, voting against strengthening our border.”

In response Giffords said, “No organization or person — no matter which party they say they represent — should think they can come to Southern Arizona and pretend to speak for me. I work hard to speak, but it’s my voice. So take it from me: Ron is an independent leader in Congress, and no one will fight harder for our community.”

Giffords' group Americans for Responsible Solutions then released the ad, “Fight For Us.” In the ad Giffords said, “We expect our leaders to fight for us, not the special interests. Ron Barber is independent, he’s courageous, and most of all he’s Arizona through and through.”

Ads

According to The Hill, "Three House races all have had more than 4,000 ads since the start of the cycle: Georgia's 12th district (Democratic Rep. John Barrow v. Republican Rick Allen), Florida's 2nd district (Republican Rep. Steve Southerland v. Democrat Gwen Graham), and Arizona's 2nd district (Democratic Rep. Ron Barber v. Republican Martha McSally)."

Endorsements

On March 29, 2014, Speaker John Boehner headlined a fundraiser for Martha McSally and Andy Tobin (AZ-01).

Media

LIBRE Initiative ad attacking Ron Barber for voting for Obamacare

On September 15, 2014, Americans for Responsible Solutions released the following ad accusing Martha McSally of opposing making it more difficult for stalkers to get guns. In response to the ad Mcsally's campaign responded, "Martha supports the full enforcement of federal laws that are in place to keep guns out of the hands of prohibited persons, including convicted felons (including stalkers), domestic abusers, the mentally ill, and people in the country illegally. On the issue of stalking, as a victim of stalking herself, Martha firmly believes convicted stalkers should be prohibited from obtaining firearms in all cases, and claims to the contrary are 100 percent false." After McSally's statement, ARS said that it would take down the ad.

Americans for Responsible Solutions - "Stalker Gap"

Martha McSally

Campaign ad praising McSally for helping others in times of need

Martha McSally - "Time"

Polls

Ron Barber vs Martha McSally
Poll	Ron Barber	Martha McSally	Undecided	Margin of Error	Sample Size
Red Racing Horses (October 21-23, 2014)	48%	46%	5%	+/-4	554
Normington Petts (June 8-10, 2014)	45%	37%	18%	+/-4.9	400
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

According to the NRCC, a poll released on July 11, 2013, showed Barber leading McSally 46% to 45%.

Issues

See also: Energy and the 2014 election: the ballots and beyond

Campaign themes

Ron Barber

Barber's campaign website listed the following issues:

“	Standing Up For The Middle Class – Jobs And The Economy: "I have worked my whole life in Southern Arizona. My wife and I ran a small business for 22 years, and now our children are raising their families here as well. That’s why making sure that our economy improves and provides good jobs is my top priority. We can’t have a thriving America without a thriving middle class." Fiscal Responsibility: "Getting our nation’s finances under control is critically important. We can do it—but only if we also focus on growing our economy. That is why I support a balanced approach that includes spending cuts as well as making sure that the rich and corporations pay their fair share." Social Security and Medicare: "I have pledged to protect Social Security and Medicare, and make sure that it is available to future generations. Millions of Americans have paid into Social Security and Medicare expecting that it would be there when they retired. For many Americans, this is their only source of income and health care security in their senior years–and they deserve representatives who will fight to make sure its there for them." Border Security: "Southern Arizonans who live near our border with Mexico deserve the same safety and security as every American. I have spent countless hours along our border meeting with residents, business owners, and law enforcement officials, and I know what we need to get the job done." Military and Veterans: "I was raised in a military family and lived on Davis-Monthan Air Force base, so I understand what our military families sacrifice when they serve. I will be a strong voice in Congress for those who serve currently and have served."	”
—Ron Barber's campaign website, http://ronbarberforcongress.com/issues/

Martha McSally

McSally's campaign website listed the following four pillars of her campaign:

“	Economy: "Families in our community are barely getting by, small businesses are struggling to survive, and Davis-Monthan is at risk of closing. Ron Barber favors job-killing policies that hurt middle class families and he was asleep at the wheel on the risk to DM until I alerted him in an August 27th op-ed. We need a representative in Congress who is going to champion solutions and policies that bring economic growth to Southern Arizona." Leadership: "Washington is broken. People are rightfully fed up with politicians and incumbents. We need servant leadership more than ever, focused on what is best for the country and community, instead of worrying about their next election. I am ready to bring to Congress the core values I learned in the Air Force; service, excellence, and integrity. It’s time for a fresh face with a proven record of leadership to solve the challenges we face." Government Overreach: "So many people in Southern Arizona have been hurt by Obamacare-the government takeover of 1/6 of the economy, and Ron Barber supports it. We need common sense solutions to bring down the cost of healthcare so it is more affordable and available, not social engineering founded on mandates, taxes, and penalties." National Security: "America is facing an increasing array of threats to our security and way of life and we must ensure we have a military that is trained and equipped to protect us. This district contains two critical military bases, a large stretch of the border that is not secure, and 85,000 veterans, as well as citizens who care deeply about the lack of leadership in DC on national security, defense, and support to veterans. I served 26 years in the military, retiring as a full Colonel, and I have the experience and proven leadership to provide oversight to the Administration to defend America."	”
—Martha McSally's campaign website, https://mcsallyforcongress.com/3-pillars-campaign/

Key votes

Below are important votes the incumbent cast during the 113th Congress.

Government shutdown

See also: United States budget debate, 2013

On September 30, 2013, the House passed a final stopgap spending bill before the shutdown went into effect. The bill included a one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate and would have also stripped the bill of federal subsidies for congressional members and staff. It passed through the House with a vote of 228-201. At 1 a.m. on October 1, 2013, one hour after the shutdown officially began, the House voted to move forward with going to a conference. In short order, Sen. Harry Reid rejected the call to conference. Ron Barber voted to approve the stopgap spending bill that would have delayed the individual mandate.

The shutdown ended on October 16, 2013, when the House took a vote on HR 2775 after it was approved by the Senate. The bill to reopen the government lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies. The House passed the legislation shortly after the Senate, by a vote of 285-144, with all 144 votes against the legislation coming from Republican members. Ron Barber voted for HR 2775.

Campaign contributions

Ron Barber

Ron Barber (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
April Quarterly	April 15, 2013	$86,068.66	$297,213.90	$(55,409.14)	$327,873.42
July Quarterly	July 15, 2013	$327,873.42	$294,191.88	$(70,446.30)	$551,619.00
October Quarterly	October 15, 2013	$551,619.00	$318,584.58	$(103,000.07)	$767,203.51
Year-End	January 31, 2014	$767,203	$252,732	$(80,706)	$939,229
April Quarterly	April 15, 2014	$939,229	$422,799	$(151,977)	$1,210,051
July Quarterly	July 15, 2014	$1,210,051	$558,954	$(205,078)	$1,563,927
Pre-Primary	August 14, 2014	$1,563,927	$245,648	$(309,576)	$1,499,999
October Quarterly	October 15, 2014	$1,499,999	$675,346	$(1,184,270)	$991,075
Pre-General	October 23, 2014	$991,075	$149,664	$(411,806)	$728,933
			Running totals
			$3,215,133.36	$(2,572,268.51)

Martha McSally

Martha McSally (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
April Quarterly	April 15, 2013	$20,380.37	$8,475.90	$(6,216.72)	$22,639.55
July Quarterly	July 15, 2013	$22,639.55	$15,002.15	$(7,037.66)	$30,604.04
October Quarterly	October 15, 2013	$30,604.04	$394,880.98	$(37,287.73)	$388,197.29
Year-End	January 31, 2014	$388,197	$322,585	$(162,807)	$547,974
April Quarterly	April 15, 2014	$547,974	$441,105	$(141,937)	$847,142
July Quarterly	July 15, 2014	$847,142	$653,357	$(343,459)	$1,157,040
Pre-Primary	August 14, 2014	$1,157,040	$382,732	$(530,096)	$1,009,677
October Quarterly	October 15, 2014	$1,009,677	$1,058,715	$(1,044,856)	$1,017,830
Pre-General	October 23, 2014	$1,017,830	$394,644	$(587,124)	$825,101
			Running totals
			$3,671,497.03	$(2,860,821.11)

Shelley Kais

Shelley Kais (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
Year-End	January 30, 2014	$0	$15,701	$(2,801)	$12,899
April Quarterly	April 15, 2014	$12,899	$6,168	$(5,963)	$13,104
July Quarterly	July 15, 2014	$13,104	$11,284	$(11,075)	$13,313
			Running totals
			$33,153	$(19,839)

Chuck Wooten

Chuck Wooten (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
April Quarterly	April 13, 2014	$0	$6,954	$(5,787)	$1,166
July Quarterly	July 10, 2014	$1,166	$20,343	$(18,080)	$3,430
			Running totals
			$27,297	$(23,867)

District history

Candidate ballot access
Find detailed information on ballot access requirements in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

2012

On November 6, 2012, Ron Barber (D) won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Martha McSally (R) in the general election.

U.S. House, Arizona District 2 General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Ron Barber Incumbent	50.4%	147,338
	Republican	Martha McSally	49.6%	144,884
	Libertarian	Anthony Powell	0%	57
Total Votes				292,279
Source: Arizona Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

2010

On November 2, 2010, Trent Franks won re-election to the United States House. He defeated John Thrasher (D), Powell Gammill (L), William Crum (Write-in) and Mark Rankin (Write-in) in the general election.

U.S. House, Arizona District 2 General Election, 2010
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Trent Franks incumbent	64.9%	173,173
	Democratic	John Thrasher	31.1%	82,891
	Libertarian	Powell Gammill	4.1%	10,820
	Write-in	William Crum	0%	8
	Write-in	Mark Rankin	0%	2
Total Votes				266,894

See also

• United States House of Representatives elections in Arizona, 2014
• United States House of Representatives elections, 2014
• U.S. House battleground districts, 2014

External links

• Arizona Elections Division

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)