Simon Morales
From Usgovsim
Simon Morales (born February 16th, 1980) is an American politician from Arizona. In 2011 he announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for Sun Belt Lieutenant Governor. With the resignation of the Democratic candidate for Governor he became the replacement candidate. In 2013 he was appointed Editor of the Arizona Republic. In 2016 he announced he was stepping down as editor to run for Sunbelt Lieutenant Governor. He lives in Tucson Arizona.
| ||||
| Editor | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| In Office: 2013 - Present | ||||
| Constituency | N/A | |||
| Preceded by | Steven Stanford | |||
| Succeeded by | incumbent | |||
| Born | February 16th 1980 Laredo, Texas | |||
| Political Party | Democratic Party | |||
| Spouse | Single | |||
| Religion | Roman Catholic | |||
Contents |
[edit] Early Life
Simon Morales was born February 16th 1980 in Laredo, Texas. He never knew his father who divorced from his mother a few months before his birth. His mother Flora was a librarian and single mother to her three children, of whom Simon was the youngest. When Simon was four years old the Morales family moved to El Paso so his mother could take a job as a librarian for the city of El Paso.
After graduating from El Paso High School with decent but not stellar grades Simon entered UTEP. During his four years at UTEP he was an active member of the Young Democrats on campus while working part time as a special education teaching aid. During this time he lived at home. After graduation he decided to leave Texas, for what would be the first time in his life he left the state and entered law school at the University of Arizona.
Upon moving to Tucson to start law school he went to work as a substitute teacher in the Tucson school district. In the three years it took him to graduate from law school he settled in Tucson and changed his mind about moving back to El Paso after graduation.
[edit] Early Career
After finishing law school he went to work as an assistant Pima County District Attorney. However after just one year in that role before he joined the staff of Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva. He spent four years as an aid to Grijalva earning political support and good will in the Pima County political establishment. During this time he was active in several local civic groups and settled on the west side of Tucson.
[edit] Political Career
In 2010 Simon decided to use his political good will on a long shot bid for a seat on the Pima County Board of Supervisors. He entered the Democratic primary as an unknown who had only lived in the county for seven years. However he was able to score an important endorsement from Congressman Grijalva. This, coupled with a strong grassroots base on the west side of Tucson allowed him to finish second in the primary and advance to the runoff. In the runoff he narrowly defeated a former State Senator with 52% of the vote. He won the general election easily over a Republican who called for the border patrol to “shoot to kill”.
In 2012 Morales announced a long shot bid for Lieutenant Governor. He set out on a listening tour across the region, hoping his grass roots support and Arizona base would help him in what could likely be a contentious primary. In the general election he was expected to face incumbent Republican Russell Hale. However the Democratic candidate, Hugh Furgeson was unable to contest his race for health reasons. On short notice Morales became the Democratic candidate for Governor, running against U.S. Senator Aida Alvera. Morales was handily defeated by Senator Alvera, after being outspent 10 to 1. He won 41% of the total vote, and carried Nevada.
In 2011 after his defeat he returned to Tucson and his position on the Board of Supervisors. In 2013 he was appointed as Editor of The Arizona Republic newspaper. He makes the daily commute to Phoenix. In 2016 he became the Democratic Candidate for Sunbelt Lieutenant Governor. In 2012, shortly after losing his Gubernatorial bid Morales publicly came out as gay, he is currently dating Peter Harrison, the son of Fmr. Sen. Chris Harrison (D-VA).
[edit] Elections Results
| Candidates | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Simon Morales [D] | 62.04% | |
| David Akers [R] | 37.96% | |
| Total | 100% | |
| Candidates | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Simon Morales [D] | 41.04% | |
| Aida Alvera [R] | 58.77% | |
| Total | 100% | |
| Candidates | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Simon Morales [D] | N/A | |
| Kathleen Nelson [R] | N/A | |
| Total | 100% | |
| Preceded by Rick Hernandez | Democratic Nominee for Sunbelt Govornor 2012 | Succeeded by Unknown |
