A COUNTY ATTORNEY is an elected official who serves as your county’s top prosecutor. County attorneys hold tremendous power in the criminal legal system, deciding what charges people face or whether they’ll face charges at all.
The ACLU of Arizona does not endorse or oppose candidates running for office.
MEET THE 2020 CANDIDATES
CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE
HOVER OVER ANSWERS TO REVEAL RESPONSES
ALL ANSWERS SOURCED FROM ACLU OF ARIZONA CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED
Will you pledge to hold police accountable by ensuring special prosecutors investigate police shootings and allegations of serious police misconduct?
JULIE GUNNIGLE
YES
“This is a day one priority. There is an undeniable conflict of interest between prosecutors and police by virtue of their close working relationship. I will create an independent and community involved unit to take on these cases and hold police accountable.”
ALLISTER ADEL
DID NOT PLEDGE
Did Not Pledge
Will you pledge to end all prosecutions of personal marijuana possession, a criminal charge that disparately impacts people of color?
JULIE GUNNIGLE
YES
“This is a day one priority.”
ALLISTER ADEL
DID NOT PLEDGE
Did Not Pledge
Will you pledge to not prosecute a doctor who performs or a patient who seeks an abortion should abortion ever become illegal in Arizona?
JULIE GUNNIGLE
YES
“Yes. I will not prosecute abortion in our state. If Roe v. Wade were to fall, it is not just abortion, it is contraceptives that will be criminalized. I am committed that Arizona will not follow this path.”
ALLISTER ADEL
DID NOT PLEDGE
"As Maricopa County Attorney, I have an ethical and legal obligation to enforce the law, regardless of how I may feel personally about it.*
*In Oct. 2020, Allister Adel provided the ACLU of Arizona with the following updated response to this question.
"In the rare event that Roe v. Wade is overturned, I will not support any law that prosecutes or criminalizes a woman for their health care choices."
Will you pledge to create an early warning system to flag police officers with a history of misconduct by documenting all police officers who have shown a pattern of excessive force, dishonesty, and other misconduct or bias and agree to not rely on these officers in criminal prosecutions?
JULIE GUNNIGLE
YES
“creating an early warning system to flag police officers with a history of misconduct is a first step in rebuilding community trust. I believe that we need a statewide Brady list to address misconduct and bias across jurisdictional lines, with due process protections to ensure those lists are accurate. I will not rely on officers in criminal prosecutions who have demonstrated a past history of bias, dishonesty, or misconduct.”
ALLISTER ADEL
DID NOT PLEDGE
Did Not Pledge
Will you pledge to clear old marijuana possession convictions from people’s records if marijuana becomes legal under Proposition 207?
ALLISTER ADEL
DID NOT PLEDGE
Did Not Pledge
ALL ANSWERS SOURCED FROM ACLU OF ARIZONA CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE
UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED
WHEN CAN I VOTE?
Early voting begins October 7
Mail your ballot by October 27
Vote in person or drop off your ballot at polling locations by November 3