Mesa Resident Dorean Taylor Wins City Council Recall Race

Mesa resident Dorean Taylor has won the historic city council recall election against Councilmember Julie Spilsbury, according to results announced Tuesday.

The controversial recall in District 2 centered on Spilsbury's endorsement of Democrat Kamala Harris in last year's presidential race, despite being a registered Republican. 

Turning Point USA heavily influenced Taylor's campaign, gathering signatures to trigger the recall election.

"Personally, I felt deceived cause I thought that [Julie Spilsbury] was a Republican and stood on the traditional platform that Republicans stand on, and the Democrat platform is different," Taylor said in an interview with AzFamily. 

She argued that Mesa voters deserve a council member who shares the political views of a district that overwhelmingly voted for Trump.

Spilsbury Position

Spilsbury, who easily won her reelection race before facing this recall, maintained that partisan politics have no place on Mesa's city council. 

"I'm in a nonpartisan position, and when you drive on the roads and call 911 and turn on your water, no one cares if you're republican or democrat, and that's what I've been doing for five years," Spilsbury said. 

Along with her previous endorsement, the community had disagreed with three of Spilsbury's votes, including raising utility bills, turning a hotel into housing for homeless people, and increasing council member salaries.

Taylor's Win

Taylor's campaign focused on fixing roads and reducing traffic, making neighborhoods safer from crime and drugs, solving Mesa's homelessness problem with compassionate solutions, and cutting government costs to lower taxes and fees for residents.

Republican support for Taylor grew when former Representative Andy Biggs congratulated her on social media. 

"Congratulations to [Dorean Taylor] on her victory last evening!" Biggs wrote on X. "We've seen what's possible when Arizona conservatives work together and chase ballots like the [Turning Point Action] team did."

The recall is a rare instance of a sitting council member being removed over political endorsements in a technically nonpartisan position.