Tucson 2021 Election Final Results: No Raise For Mayor, Council

TUCSON, AZ — The city of Tucson's mayor and City Council members will not be getting raises, the voters decided last week. Voters, however, did decide to increase the city's minimum wage to incrementally bring it to $15 per hour by the start of 2025. City council members are already making less than the state minimum wage and their last raise was in 1999.

The city, on Monday evening, posted its final vote counts from the Nov. 2 election showing that Proposition 410 was voted down by 970 votes.

If passed, Proposition 410 would have increased the Tucson mayor's salary from $42,000 to $54,000 per year. It would have increased Tucson City Council Member salaries from $24,000 to $36,000 per year.

Voters overwhelmingly supported Proposition 206 which will increase Tucson's minimum wage to $13 per hour starting in April and continue incremental increases until reaching $15 per hour in 2025. The proposition would also create a new city Department of Labor Standards to implement and enforce the new wage rules.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau the median income in Tucson in 2019 was $43,425 and the per capita income was $23,655.

Tucson City Council members are already paid less than Arizona's $12.15 minimum wage, and the increases set to happen according to the new law will push the council's pay even further out of line with the city's own standards. A $13 per hour minimum wage equals around $27,000 per year for 40 hours per week of work and a $15 per hour wage is around $31,000 per year.

Tucson City Council members and the mayor have not received raises since 1999.

The final vote counts for both city propositions, according to the city's official results, are below.

Proposition 206 (minimum wage increase)

Yes: 52,907

No: 30,895

Proposition 410 (Council and mayor raises)

Yes: 41,291

No: 42,261