By Daniel C. Vock | Governing
The centerpiece of Greg Stanton’s re-election campaign is a tax increase. The Phoenix mayor not only wants his city’s voters to approve a 35-year sales tax hike later this month, but he wants them to do it on the same ballot that has him running for a second term. Stanton believes voters will support both him and his tax policy because, in doing so, they will be casting a vote for transportation. The mayor argues that an improved regional transportation network — and specifically a bigger light rail system — are the key to his own political fortunes and to the economic well-being of the region as a whole.
