Chin, Adams, Hodge Top Vote-Getters In Tempe City Council Race

TEMPE, AZ — With around 2,000 more ballots added to the totals Wednesday evening, Arlene Chin, Jennifer Adams and Berdetta Hodge had garnered the most votes in the race for Tempe City Council, according to unofficial vote totals posted by the Maricopa County Elections Department.

As of the most recent results update around 6 p.m. Wednesday, Chin had 11,873 votes, Adams had 11,563 votes and Hodge came in with 10,107 votes. Vote totals won't be official until after Friday, according to Megan Gilbertson, communications director for the Maricopa County Elections Department.

Seven candidates were in the running Tuesday for three open seats on the Tempe City Council.

"This victory is because of YOU - my outstanding supporters, volunteers, donors and friends," Chin posted on her campaign's Facebook page. "I look forward to the next four years of working in partnership with you. Thank you!!"

Adams, via her Facebook page, thanked her campaign team, donors, endorsers and friends for their support.

"I’m so very excited and honored that you elected me to work for you another four years," Adams said in the post.

Hodge thanked her supporters for their encouragement and love.

"Results are in and it is official," Hodge said on her Facebook page. "We have won our race for the Tempe City Council!!!!"

The City of Tempe will use a mathematical formula to determine the winners of Tuesday's primary election, and if a runoff election on May 17 will be necessary.

To win a seat out of the primary election, a candidate must garner a majority of the votes cast in that primary. To determine what constitutes a majority, the city will total all votes for all seven candidates and divide that total by the number of open seats. In this case, there are three open seats.

Then elections officials divide that number by two and round to the nearest whole number. Any candidate who gets more votes than that number is elected outright to one of the open seats.

If only two candidates reach the majority threshold, then the next two highest vote-getters will advance to the runoff election in May.

The vote totals for the remainder of the candidates as of 6 p.m. Wednesday:

• Casey Clowes: 7,001
• Gina Kash: 4,323
• Harper Lines: 3,325
• John Skelton: 7,370

Adams is an incumbent, first elected to the City Council in 2018. She was an employee of the city for 29 years prior to that. Adams has focused on "fiscal responsibility, empowering neighborhoods in the decision-making process, promoting local business, promoting sustainability practices, increasing our housing affordability, and improving our city's infrastructure," she said on the city website. She was endorsed by Tempe Mayor Corey Woods, former Mayor Hugh Hallman and former Mayor Neil Giuliano.

Chin is a former City Council member, elected as an interim member of the council in 2019, and a 47-year resident of Tempe. She has a history of community involvement, according to her campaign website, and was endorsed by Harry Mitchell, former U.S. Congressman, former Arizona State Senator and former Tempe mayor.

Hodge has been a resident of Tempe for more than 40 years and has been a leader in local charities, according to her campaign website. She is currently a member of the Tempe Union High School Board and has a passion for community organizing. She was endorsed by Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego and Tempe Mayor Corey Woods, among many others.