Sharon Wolcott wins Surprise mayor election

SOURCE: AZ CENTRAL

by Dustin Gardiner and Amy B Wang - Nov. 8, 2011


Sharon Wolcott appears to have ousted incumbent Lyn Truitt in the runoff election for Surprise mayor, a contentious contest driven by concerns about accountability and financial missteps at City Hall.

Wolcott, a former city councilwoman, was leading by a wide margin in unofficial results on Tuesday night in the mail-ballot election. The early results were from ballots counted through 2 p.m. Tuesday.

Some residents voted at Surprise City Hall until the polls closed at 7 p.m. A final tally was expected from the Maricopa County Elections Department later in the week.

The election caps two years of political infighting and a series of major financial missteps in the northwest Valley city of about 117,000. Audits have revealed sweeping accounting errors, including $73 million that was misallocated over a decade to build a new City Hall complex, recreation campus and
other projects.

"They're looking for change, they're looking for transparency and openness,'' a jubilant Wolcott said as she celebrated the news with more than 100 rowdy supporters at an Irish pub near City Hall. "I can't wait to go to work for you."

Pam Hilinski, a Wolcott supporter, said Wolcott "has the skills that are necessary for the job."

Hilinski said Surprise needs an experienced leader and can no longer be run like a small city of 15,000.

Wolcott seized on residents' sense of dissatisfaction, contrasting herself as a change agent while she portrayed Truitt as an idle, hands-off mayor. Her campaign blamed Truitt for the misallocation of money, though many of the policy decisions were made before Truitt took office in 2008.

Truitt ran a far less visible campaign than Wolcott and focused on his record; his campaign motto was "Promises Kept."

He touted endorsements from GOP leaders across the state and his supporters fiercely attacked Wolcott over her political background--she served in the Minnesota Legislature as a Democrat for 12 years.

Truitt watched the results with about two dozen supporters at a TGI Friday's in Surprise. At his party earlier in the night, the atmosphere was jovial. Shortly after 8 p.m., the call from the Surprise city clerk came.

Truitt stepped out of the side room and returned to thank his supporters.

"Unfortunately, we didn't do it tonight," he said.

The room seemed stunned. There were audible gasps and groans.

"It's disappointing," Truitt said. "God bless our city. Thanks again, everybody."

City Clerk Sherry Aguilar said ballots cast after 2 p.m. Tuesday will be tallied by county officials starting Wednesday. Final results are expected by Friday