Now 2016 was also the year Penzone replaced Arpaio and it went exactly the same way. The incumbent was not performing, costing the county money, had pissed off a lot of people, and an organized group of influencers went out in the community to fan resentment. And no Republican could get traction to replace them, and they wouldn't retire, so we ended up with bad choices. In retrospect, Fuentes and Penzone did not need much but the newspaper and the stubbornness of the incumbents. However, once in they could set up major cheating.
More about this office, director of elections. A few years ago, we had several elections that did not go well. This led to the ouster of the county recorder, Helen Purcell, and her director of elections, Karen Osborne, in 2016. Lots of legal bitterness and Fuentes got in. https://www.change.org/p/arizona-impeach-maricopa-county-recorders-helen-purcell-and-karen-osborne
Now 2016 was also the year Penzone replaced Arpaio and it went exactly the same way. The incumbent was not performing, costing the county money, had pissed off a lot of people, and an organized group of influencers went out in the community to fan resentment. And no Republican could get traction to replace them, and they wouldn't retire, so we ended up with bad choices. In retrospect, Fuentes and Penzone did not need much but the newspaper and the stubbornness of the incumbents. However, once in they could set up major cheating.