Garcia announces run:

Education-leadership professor David Garcia, a Democrat, announces his candidacy for governor, saying that incumbent Republican Gov. Doug Ducey is systematically destroying public education in Arizona. The election is in November 2018.

Democrat David Garcia, an education-leadership professor, announced his candidacy for governor on Wednesday, saying Republican Gov. Doug Ducey is systematically destroying public education in Arizona.

Garcia, 47, narrowly lost a 2014 bid for state superintendent of public instruction, and was expected to try to unseat Republican Diane Douglas in a rematch.

But Garcia shifted gears late last week, after watching Ducey and the Republican-controlled Legislature push through an expansion of the state’s controversial school-voucher program. As governor, Garcia said Wednesday, he would more directly influence the state’s future on public education.

He made the announcement at the state Capitol with his wife and two daughters by his side, and with cheers from supporters who included publicschool teachers, parents, Democratic lawmakers, and others. Some held signs that read, “Educators for David Garcia,” “Time to Dump Ducey!,” and “A governor for all the people not just the rich.”

“Last Thursday, when the governor signed the bill, I realized that I couldn’t run for superintendent anymore,” Gar-

cia said in an interview Wednesday with The Arizona Republic before his announcement. “The superintendent’s role is to implement the voucher bill, and there’s no way I could put together a fullthroated campaign for a position whose responsibility would be to dismantle public education.

“... Someone’s got to stand up for public-school parents and demand that the Legislature and the governor honor our choice. The thought is that the ‘choosers’ are the ones that are leaving public schools, and that’s not true: We have hundreds of thousands of publicschool parents ... who have chosen traditional public schools and charter schools for their children, and we’re not honoring their choice. We’re 50th in the nation in education, and instead of helping out our schools, we’re going to take more money from them.”

Ducey’s political adviser, J.P. Twist, said he isn’t “going to get involved in the Democrats’ primary, but he (Garcia) appears to be loose with the facts right out of the gate.”

On Tuesday, Ducey praised the ESA expansion, calling it an “innovative” tool for parents. Asked if his support for it will make him vulnerable in a re-election campaign, he said, “I think that campaign seasons are entirely too long, so we can talk about that next year. I do intend to stand on my record of action and accomplishments.”

Ducey negotiated a deal out of the public eye to expand the program, which was capped to about 5,500 for certain families, to an estimated 30,000 by 2022.

The Empowerment Scholarship Account program allows parents to take public money that would otherwise go to public schools and use it for private-school tuition, tutoring, therapies and other educational expenses. The Legislature created the program in 2011 for disabled children and since then has widened it, with the latest expansion making all publicschool students eligible. The plan is estimated to save the state’s general fund $3.4 million in fiscal year 2021, according to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee.

Supporters hail expansion of the program as a model for states eyeing ways to give parents more choices in educating their children. But critics — including Democrats, public-education groups and some moderate Republicans — say the expanded program will drain too much money from public schools while subsidizing private school for families who might be able to afford it.

Last week, Garcia was seen rallying with parents, retired teachers and education groups at the state Capitol, shortly before the Legislature began a marathon debate of the measure. On Friday, he said he woke up and began making calls to put together a team to run for governor.

At least one other Democrat may jump into the race: Sen. Steve Farley of Tucson. Already, another Democrat unknown to practically anyone — Noah Dyer — has announced his candidacy.

Ducey, who rose from the treasurer’s post to the Governor’s Office in 2014, is raising money but has not yet formally kicked off his re-election effort. The governor will have considerable financial backing from the Republican establishment, industry groups such as the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and — if history shows — from “dark money” groups that do not have to report the source of their funding.

Garcia is widely seen as a candidate who can rival Ducey on education policy, but it is unclear if he can draw financial backing to match Ducey. Garcia said it will be difficult to match the money that Ducey undoubtedly will receive, but he said he will rely on in-state donors rather than out-of state “special interests,” a reference to the out-ofstate groups that helped Ducey win during the 2014 election.

And, in a red-leaning state, Garcia will have to win over a fair number of independents and moderate Republicans who may be unimpressed with Ducey’s performance.

“It’s definitely an uphill battle given voter registration numbers in Arizona, and the governor will be an incumbent at that point and has proven adept at campaigning and raising money,” said Richard Herrera, an Arizona State University associate professor of political science. “There are multiple challenges, even for a very strong, credible Democratic candidate. To run against an incumbent governor is a very daunting task.

“What any Democrat, including David Garcia would hope for, is the ability to tie the governor to unpopular policies and/or people. So to the extent that President Trump’s approval stays low ... and the governor’s tied to him, that could help because it could help Democratic voter turnout ... and he would also hope to see an uptick of voter participation.”

During the 2016 primary election, Ducey would not publicly pledge his support for any of the Republican candidates. He eventually said he would support the GOP nominee and urged Republicans to unify to ensure Republicans win the White House. He then led the state GOP delegation to the Republican National Convention in Ohio.

Garcia was born and raised in Mesa and has lived in central Phoenix for two decades. He formerly worked as the associate superintendent for assessments and accountability at the state Department of Education.

Follow the reporter on Twitter @yvonnewingett and reach her at yvonne.wingett@arizona republic.com or 602-4444712.