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Ahwatukee delegates ready to work for Clinton
Ahwatukee and some Tempe delegates to the National Democratic Convention next week are, from left: Lisa Scinto, Nick Collins, Marie Colangelo, Joe Seelye and Jeff Tucker.
By Paul Maryniak AHWATUKEE FOOTHILLS NEWS EDITOR
If predictions made two months ago had come true, the three Ahwatukee residents flying to Philadelphia for next week’s Democratic National Convention could have been heading to a not-verycivil war. Marie Colangelo was elected a Hillary Clinton delegate while Arizona Democrats voted for Nick Collins and Lisa Scinto as Bernie Sanders supporters -- as was Jeff Tucker, another delegate with Ahwatukee ties who recently moved to Tempe. But now that Sanders has thrown in the towel, the four delegates are all but singing “Kumbaya” as they prepare for what they consider a historic landmark for their party and the nation: the selection of the first female candidate for President of the United States. No matter which of the two candidates they were supporting, Scinto said, “We’re all Democrats and happy to represent Arizona.” Although all four have been committed
party activists for years, this will be their first convention as delegates. They ran mini campaigns in the spring against other party faithful in hotly contested races to become a delegate. They “won” the chance to spend $4,000 to $5,000 out of pocket so they can be crowded into halls and hotel suites with hundreds of like-minded individuals during a time of year when excessive humidity makes monsoon season in Phoenix feel like a breeze. And they can’t wait to get there. They are excited and feel privileged to be chosen, they said. “I wanted to be a delegate because I knew it was going to be a momentous selection not just for women but for the country,” said Colangelo, a former Pennsylvanian who has been active at the local level in Democratic presidential campaigns since George McGovern’s illfated run in 1972. Added Tucker: “This seemed like the right time to be a delegate.” They ponder the coming campaign with varying degrees of optimism.
On the one end of the spectrum is Tucker, a Democratic activist at the state and local levels since he moved to Arizona from Philadelphia in 1999. “We have a huge opportunity this year with Republican apathy as a result of (Donald J.) Trump,” he said. “This is an exciting time for Democrats and I predict this is the year when Arizona will turn blue.” He sees a combination of the “Trump effect” and Clinton’s experience creating ripples down the ticket, with U.S. Sen. John McCain falling victim at the polls. Scinto, a retired high school principal, who has been active in politics since her dad had her hand out leaflets at polling places when she was 5 years old in Detroit, and Colangelo are more cautious. Scinto suggested that Clinton will face more resistance among certain blocs of voters because she is a woman than Barack Obama confronted because he is African American. “There are some men and women who don’t have the confidence in a woman being able to make decisions in times of major crises,” said Scinto, an African American. But she believes that a Clinton nomination “will be great for our daughters and granddaughters because it will help break down barriers.” While enthusiastic, the delegates also believe they will have a lot of work after Philadelphia. “This is the most important election we’ve ever been though,” pronounced Tucker. Collins and Colangelo nodded in agreement when Scinto said, “This (election) will go down in history.” The delegates say that’s partly because of Trump. “He’s very divisive,” said Collins. Scinto called him “very vulgar” while Colangelo asserted that he lacks the knowledge necessary to be a good president. But the delegates also see other factors that make this presidential election historical. “The tension in the United States right now plays into this,” said Scinto, citing national discord over police-shooting
incidents. Colangelo, a retired paralegal, believes that the economy also looms large. “A lot of people today feel like they’re not living as well as their parents did,” she said. With some justices in their 80s, the prospect of multiple Supreme Court seats to fill during the next four years also makes this election a landmark, the delegates said. Yet, while Tucker believes that Democrats will retake the U.S. Senate, none seemed optimistic about the same thing happening in the House of Representatives. “Gridlock is not something we aspire to,” Tucker said, “It’s important we find compromise more often than what we see right now.” The delegates believe that Clinton is capable of achieving compromise, and said they doubt the email controversy will have much impact on voters. And they consider Bill Clinton an asset not just in the election but in a Clinton administration, though Scinto said, “I hope he doesn’t overshadow her.” Still, she added, “If something happens in the middle of the night with North Korea, having someone in bed next to you who has been through those kinds of calls is an asset.” They don’t quite know what to expect when they get to the City of Brotherly Love, where the hotel that is hosting the Arizona delegation jacked up room rates to $500 a night, prompting all of them to bunk with at least one other delegate. Collins, who came here from Louisiana in 2003 and “got passionate about local politics,” is sharing a room with three other delegates. But he doesn’t expect to be spending much time in that room. “We have to be at breakfast to get our credentials for the day,” Collins said. “Then the caucuses start at 10 a.m. and the convention is on from 5-11 p.m. After that, I guess, it’s just a lot of parties.” But when the party is over, he and the other delegates said, it will be time to knock on doors and hit the phone banks. “We just have to get out and tell people why our candidate is better,” Tucker said.
ahwatukee.com | Ahwatukee Foothills News | WEDNESDAY, JULY 20, 2016 Page 19