SAFFORD — One of the many prospective candidates for Congress in the district that represents Graham and Greenlee counties will be in Safford this week.
Democrat Kirsten Engel will hold a meet and greet with voters at Graham County Democratic Party Headquarters on 5th Avenue in Safford on Saturday, Dec. 2, from 1-3 p.m.
Engel is one of seven who have filed statements of interest in running for the Arizona District 6 seat, including Republican incumbent Rep. Juan Ciscomani. He could face a primary challenge, as Republican Kathleen Winn and Austin Unruh have also filed statements of interest.
Winn, who lost to Ciscomani in the 2022 Republican primary, currently hosts the show “Winn Tucson” on KWOI 1030 AM in Tucson.
Unruh, who lives in Pinal County, describes himself as “a political strategist” on his X (formerly Twitter) page.
The other Democrat expressing interest in the race is Vieri Tenuta, while C. Vance Cast is the only candidate to file a statement of interest for the Libertarian Party.
O’Donnell, of Tucson, is the CEO of C4 Recovery Foundation, which deals with behavioral health and addictive disorders.
Tenuta, of Tucson, is described as “an accomplished cybersecurity expert with over two decades of experience in technology strategy, policy development, and systems engineering,” on his LinkedIn page, while his X page lists him as a board member for Tanque Verde School District.
The LinkedIn page for Cast, of Tucson, describes him as the founder of “a member driven and supported Futures trading group,” as well as a research analyst and investor.
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 9:44 a.m. Tuesday, December 5, 2023, to reflect that Democrat Jack O’Donnell has dropped out of the race.