Mayor’s opposition silent on coming election

Election season is upon us and that means an influx of signs, commercials and handshakes is imminent as candidates attempt to win over voters in Maricopa.

In these final days of March, it also means collecting last-minute signatures to get on the primary ballot in August. A sparse field in the mayoral race seems like it just might get tinier.

Three candidates filed paperwork with the city indicating they’d bid for a four-year term as Maricopa’s next mayor: incumbent Nancy Smith, former Maricopa City Council member and Maricopa Chamber of Commerce Vice Chair Leon Potter, and Homestead resident Michael Matagrano.

With two days before the signature deadline, it looks like Smith still has a chance to run unopposed. When asked if she reached the 378-signature minimum, she only had two words: “Way over.”

Other candidates were less confident about reaching the April 1 deadline to submit the minimum 378 signatures to the city clerk’s office. As of Thursday, none of the mayoral hopefuls had submitted their signatures.

On Friday, Matagrano told InMaricopa he wasn’t sure if he would have enough signatures to get on the ballot.

“I should know by Sunday,” he said.

Potter did not respond to many requests for comment via phone and email over the last several days.