[DAII]

A little about SM's District 12:

The District

This district encompasses much of the suburban far west Valley, south of Bell Road and dips into the more urbanized west Valley to take in oddly shaped pieces of Glendale and a few Phoenix precincts. Luke Air Force Base lies within the district, and its presence impacts the development of large areas around the base. The Air Force has threatened to close Luke if there is anymore development close to the base. This means much of the surrounding area will remain agricultural. Developers would like to nibble away at the vacant land close to Luke, but the surrounding cities prefer to preserve Luke, with its annual regional economic impact estimated in 2002 to be in excess of $1.3 billion. Also in the district are Goodyear Auxiliary Airfield #6, the Wigwam Resort, and large areas of commercial development that have followed Loop 303, whose western leg lies almost entirely within this district.


Politics

When this district was created, the historical voting pattern among its voters favored Republicans by 8 percent, making it the very close to being considered competitive - a designation that requires a difference of no more than 7 percent. The registration gap in 2002 was slightly over 5 percent, and in the intervening years the Republicans have increased their edge to 5.5 percent. The district has sent only Republicans to the Capitol since 2002. Issues related to Luke AFB (including development) and military personnel in general are important in the district.

Demographics

Voter registration has increased considerably in this district since June. Republicans, who enjoy a registration majority, alone have added 6,000 voters to their rolls. Similar growth rates have occurred among the Democrat and independent ranks, but not enough for either group to close the Republican-favored gap. The Republican majority helped President George W. Bush defeat Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry in 2004 by over 18 percentage points.