A voter has filed a lawsuit claiming state Sen. Sylvia Allen doesn’t have enough valid signatures to qualify for the August primary ballot.
The lawsuit filed in Maricopa County Superior Court by voter William Chachkes claims only about half of Allen’s roughly 900 nominating petition signatures are valid. If the lawsuit succeeds, Allen would lose her place on the primary ballot – leaving Wendy Rogers’ bid for the nomination uncontested.
Chachkes a Yavapai County gun rights advocate and former teacher in the April 20 lawsuit claimed a host of irregularities in Allen’s signatures, which would leave her about 120 signatures short of the 484 she needed to get on the ballot.
Among other things, Chachkes claims Allen signed off on signature sheets on dates when she was actually in Phoenix during the legislative session.
Allen dismissed the suit and launched her own counterattack on Rogers, a retired lieutenant colonel and businesswoman who unsuccessfully ran against Democratic Rep. Tom O’Halleran in 2018.
“I will successfully defend my nomination petitions and signatures. This is an inconvenience, a frivolous attempt by a supporter of ‘Tempe’ Wendy Rogers,” Allen wrote in an email request for comment.
Allen said Rogers lives in Tempe, not in District 6, which stretches from Flagstaff to Alpine and includes parts of four counties and all of Rim Country and the White Mountains. Allen said Rogers parked a 12-foot-wide vacation trailer in Flagstaff, but actually lives in a 3,000 square-foot-home in Tempe a mile from her business headquarters.
“It shows a serious lack of integrity to deceive her supporters, typical of her campaign style. She is in the middle of a defamation lawsuit from her 2018 run against Steve Smith” in which she won the Republican nomination to take on O’Halleran.
Rogers’ campaign did not respond to a request for comment prior to press time.
Rogers has run a slashing campaign, mostly directed at “socialist Democrats” and pledging unstinting support for President Donald Trump.
On the Democratic side of the District 6 battle, Retired Col. Felicia French is running unopposed. In November, French, who lives in Pine, will face whoever emerges from the Republican primary in August. French came close to winning the District 6 House seat two years ago. She was a combat medivac helicopter pilot in Afghanistan and served 32 years in the military. She has mostly stressed support for education and state policies that promote environmental “sustainability.”
Republican and Democratic candidates gather nominating signatures based on how many people voted in the last election. The formula required Allen to gather 484 valid signatures from registered voters living in the district, according to the lawsuit.
Allen submitted petitions containing 956 signatures. However, the lawsuit claims 538 of those signatures are invalid. He claims only 418 signatures pass muster, leaving Allen 120 signature short.
The signatures reveal “a potentially troubling pattern of fraud in how those signatures were certified,” according to the lawsuit filed by the offices of Snell and Wilmer.
The lawsuit claims Allen personally certified signature sheets gathered in Flagstaff, Sedona, Cottonwood, Holbrook, Snowflake and Taylor on days when her public calendar indicated she was in Phoenix at the legislature. The list of “deficiencies” mostly centered on a laborious cross check of names, signatures and addresses on the nominating petitions with files kept by the registrar of voters in four counties.
Chachkes asked the court to bar Allen from the Aug. 4 ballot and to award him court costs and attorney fees.
Allen has 20 days to file a response. Judges usually fast-track such cases, with the election fast approaching.
Chachkes on the internet is listed as the producer and lead host of Firearms Chat Podcast. The website says he’s a medically retired educator, former army aviator and master chief warrant officer. The information on the website also says he has been a newspaper writer, football coach and history teacher.
Ironically, Allen supporters two years ago knocked Rep. Brenda Barton off the ballot by challenging her signatures. Barton was seeking Allen’s seat after hitting term limits on her own House seat. After a chunk of Barton’s signatures got thrown out, Allen ran unopposed for the Republican nomination. She narrowly beat Holbrook Councilman Wade Carlisle in the 2018 General Election. Barton is now running for the House seat being vacated by Rep. Bob Thorpe.
Allen has earned a reputation as one of the state’s most conservative lawmakers, but Rogers’ rhetoric has made her sound moderate.
In some more recent fundraising appeals by email, Rogers has said, “I am so pleased Trump is taking decisive action, stopping all immigration so he can deal with the crisis at hand. It will keep American jobs safe from the invisible enemy! Makes sense! But understand the Dems are likely to try to overturn this because they don’t care about Americans and want open borders, no matter who it harms.”
In another post she said, “These Dems – on EVERY level – simply hate people of faith and will spare no excuse to elevate their REAL religion – abortion – and strip the First Amendment rights of Christians.”
Allen said she’s confident a judge will throw out the challenge to her signatures.
“As a Rural Legislator and Chairman of the Senate Education committee I will continue to defend our unique rural challenges and issues. Standing on my record of quality education, pro-life, 2nd amendment, border security, free markets, fair and equal taxes, water, forest health, and rural job creation. I appreciate all the volunteers who carried my petitions and feel confident that the judge will dismiss this lawsuit.”
Contact paleshire@payson.com
(10) comments
Senator Allen say's she is pro2A but her voting record says otherwise. In 2018 she voted for the Ducey's and Senator Steve Smith's SB1519. A "School Safety" bill with a Red Flag law in it. Ducey brought it back after visiting the Gov or Florida. It was a Red Flag Law there, It was one here. The NRA and the Arizona Citizens Defense league told all the Senators how it violated the Bill of Rights. The Senators all chose to vote Party over PRINCIPAL. Rather then give a No Red Flag law pledged in 2020, she attacked those asking for the pledge and got Fann, Bower's and the Governors office to do the same. Shame on you Senator Allen. Our friends know and will never vote for you and your shameful actions. Just like you hurt Brenda Barton in 2018 and broke your word you did the same thing to Bob Thorpe during the 2020 election cycle. You are an oath breaker. Go back to the porch and figure out what your values are. They seem to be eroding. Last cycle I helped you with money and time. No longer. Your just a Ducey Swamp Monster. IMO, You and Ducey are why our state is turning Blue. You stand for nothing.
Why should Sylvia Allen get an exception to the rules for running in the Senate race? She is just ticked off because Wendy Rogers has followed the rules and has succeeded fair and square. Ms. Allen doesn't care about any of the people of who she is supposed to be serving. All she cares about is the money that goes into her pockets. We need new blood; Wendy has already served her country and knows what it takes and now Wendy wants to serve in a different way--which she will do honorably. Ms. Allen can't even come close to saying she served her people honorably. Time to retire for good Ms. Allen!!!
When I just read this article , it reminds me of a meeting that I attended at the ncrc, and someone asked her why do you want to give more funds to charter schools, vs public schools, and then someone else made a comment , don't you own a charter school ? Her answer was "Just because my name is on a llc, does not mean I own it .". A family member seems to run the school, and for as long that I lived in Arizona, with the community property , community debt law, that seems to the same to me..
Sylvia is lying about the Steve Smith employer lawsuit. The lawsuit was concluded. Wendy won it decisively in December of 2019. Therefore everything Wendy's 2018 campaign said was true and approved in Arizona's second highest court.
But the so called "NEWS PAPER" seems to keep missing the fact that all the lawsuits or Sec of State reviews have been concluded Allen wins 0, Rogers wins 3. It would be nice if folks would learn the facts so they can stop supporting Sen Allen who has gone astray since she started Stabbing Brenda Barton and Bob Thorpe in the back for personal gain. She broke her other to them and to the voters when she voted for SB1519 Arizona's first Red Flag law. She was asked to make a "No Red Flag law" pledge and admit her mistake. Instead she attacked those who asked for it. What does that tell you? She will violate the Bill of Right and Due process again if it suits her political masters. Thank God we have a choice in LD6! Anyone but Allen!!
I just read this article about the lawsuit filed in Maricopa County Superior Court by registered voter William Chachkes, because too many of her nominating petitions and signatures are not valid. Which in the end, will disqualify her from even being on the ballot, .......and I remembered back. Isn't it ironic that only two years ago, Allen's very own supporters knocked Rep. Brenda Barton off the ballot, the exact same way, by challenging her signatures.
And I thought, IS THIS KARMA?
But then, understanding politics lately, and the fact that Allen has earned a very poor reputation by Republicans, for being one of the state’s most moderate lawmakers, balancing precariously on the edge of being a liberal. I believe the correct term is R.I.N.O. I concluded that, that was why she could not garner enough legal signatures, and had to resort to a serious lack of integrity to try to deceive the electorate by personally certifying signature sheets gathered in Flagstaff, Sedona, Cottonwood, Holbrook, Snowflake and Taylor on days when she was really in Phoenix at the legislature.
Thank God we have an honest Constitutional Conservative still in this election by the name of Wendy Rogers, who is ready to keep ALL Arizonians safe from the many invisible enemies we are battling!
But understand the Dems and R.I.N.O.S are likely to try to overturn this
We'll be watching every step.
Thank You
Wow, Peter and his wolves gang rides once more into the dusty western town of Payson and produces more political diatribe.
Turnabout is fair play; in Allen’s last election her donors the Kadar’s of Sedona to challenge Brenda Barton’s signatures after Allen refused to keep her promise to Barton and not to run for the Senate. The writers comment about Allen has earned a reputation as one of the most conservative is FALSE. The writer fail to mention that Allen was behind many Northern Arizona Cites had to raise their property taxes, due to Allen cut School maintenance monies for the schools, were at the same time she sent funding to the charter schools. Where her biggest donors are from the Charter School Industry. Allen also, is behind a sales tax increase which Arizona’s are against and she proclaims it’s for the schools. Allen also is behind spending $20 Million on a bridge to nowhere because of a stupid motorist. Also Allen last year voted to take our GUNS through a RED FLAG LAE. Allen is not a conservative, she’s a Socialist Republican!
With all due respect to Senator Allen her allegation about Wendy Rogers' residency is incorrect. I have personally been at Rogers' home in Flagstaff as early as December, 2015 (and have the photos to prove it.) It is actually a nice spacious manufactured home tucked away in a nice neighborhood with great neighbors. Stating that it is a travel trailer is an insult to Col Rogers and all her neighbors.
She has survived way too long and needs to be gone!!!! Dump Allen this election!!
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Avoid obscene, hateful, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful.
Be Nice. No name-calling, racism, sexism or any sort of -ism degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article. Real names only!