Updated early results: Flagstaff votes in the Arizona primary elections

For Board of Supes, Jeronimo Vasquez has 1,118 votes, while Tomas Hernandez has 558.

9 p.m. update: With 72% of precincts reporting, Becky Daggett is still holding a comfortable lead for Flagstaff mayor with 4,243 votes (52.2%), while Paul Deasy is in second with 2,207 votes and Daniel Williamson had 1,684 votes. The top two advance to the general election in November.

For the county Board of Supervisors, District 2, Jeronimo Vasquez had 1,094 votes (67%) and a big advantage over Tomas Hernandez with 538 votes.

8 p.m. update: Coconino County posted results of 16,190 tabulated early voting ballots — about 17% of registered voters in the county. In the Flagstaff mayoral race, Becky Daggett had a strong lead of 3,941 votes (53.98%) followed by incumbent Paul Deasy with 1,993 votes (27.30%) and Daniel Williamson with 1,367 votes (18.72%).

In the county board of supervisors race for District 2, Jeronimo Vasquez was leading with 1,021 votes (67.39%) against Tomas “Tommy” Hernandez with 494 votes (32.61%).

The City of Sedona mayoral race showed a strong lead from Scott Jablow with 310 votes (45.52%) followed by Samaire Armstron with 138 votes (20.26%), Sandra J Moriarty with 12 votes (17.62%) and Kurt Gehlbach with 113 votes (16.59%).

The Arizona primary elections got off to a slow start in Flagstaff as voters trickled in to polling places to select candidates who will proceed to the Nov. 8 general election.

According to the county recorder’s office, as of last Friday, about 17,000 (18%) of the 93,000 registered voters in Coconino County had returned early ballots. The lower-than-usual early ballot return could have been balanced by robust in-person turnout on election, but initial on-the-ground observations did not suggest this would be the case.

The Northern Arizona University voting center, one of three major voting centers in Coconino County, was fully staffed and running smoothly, but less than a dozen voters showed up during the peak hours of 7 and 8 a.m.

“It’s a little disappointing to walk in there and not see very many people,” said Brittany Montague, who came to vote on her way to work. “And not a lot of young people either — which is important.”

Montague, who has served as a poll worker in the past, vouched for increasing voting accessibility by allowing people to register at polling sites on election day. With her personal vote, Montague was most interested in selecting Flagstaff’s mayor.

“Change happens at the local level,” she said.

While she did not share who she voted for, Montague’s top priority was “protection for our forests.”

“That’s near and dear,” she said.

Dylan Rust also stopped by the NAU voting center on his way to work. He said he was interested in supporting candidates with a sense of “decorum,” who would “spend money well” and “work across the aisle.”

“I’m looking for candidates who are patriotic, not for party but for country,” Rust said.

To that end, he did not mind sharing how he voted in the Flagstaff mayoral election.

“I voted for Becky Daggett,” Rust said.

Turnout rates were similar, if not marginally better, at the Flagstaff Mall voting center between the hours of 8 and 9 a.m. On his way out, Regnar Billie said the voting center operation seemed to disprove the accusations of election mismanagement that plagued the 2020 elections.

“It looks like it’s well organized, properly staffed,” Billie said. “I don’t see anything that can go wrong.”

Billie was happy to share that he voted for Daniel Williamson in the Flagstaff mayoral race, but lamented that he did not feel he was sufficiently educated about the candidates.

“I wish I had known more,” he said. “Hopefully I chose the best out of all of them.”

Angela Bercu also shared that she voted for Williamson, saying she had come to trust him through his work in the faith community.

“He’s a pastor,” Bercu said. “I used to attend his church and I did some ministry with him in the past.”

Justice system reform was a priority for Bercu, as she feels that a family member had been wrongfully sentenced for crimes surrounding an addiction that was the result of a medical prescription.

Because of his background experience in drug courts and rehabilitation programs such as Teen Challenge, Williamson was an attractive candidate for Bercu.

“I think he would do a great job as far as that’s concerned, as well as the other things needed in our community,” she said.

The upside of low turnouts was that they made for a quick and “super easy” voting experience, said Jesse Hornbeck, who voted at the Shepherd of the Hills Church polling location. To her, the most important reason to participate in the primaries was making sure her “voice was heard.”

Hornbeck shared that she had voted for Daggett in the Flagstaff mayoral race. Influential to her decision had been recent experiences helping residents of Stevanna Way cope with post-fire flooding.

“I saw a lot of local politicians come by and ask questions and then not follow through by the end of the day,” Hornbeck said.

She wants a mayor who “represents everyone and not just hot button places or popular places.”

While the she was pleased that her voting experience was “10 minutes in and out,” Hornbeck did express some dismay that there weren’t more voters present at the polling locations.

“I just wish everyone would vote,” she said. “If they don’t vote, I don’t think they should complain.”