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Andrea Dalessandro
for State Representative
Legislative District 30

Sierra Vista The Herald, August 2, 2008

ELECTION 2008: House seats in District 30 will have new faces

By Ted Morris
Herald/Review

SIERRA VISTA — Legislative District 30 has been a stronghold for Southeastern Arizona Republicans. This fall, the Republicans will try to hold on to Tim Bee’s home district. Two-term House winner Jonathan Paton hopes to be beat Democrat Georgette Valle to replace Bee in the District 30 Senate seat.
When Paton gave up his claim on another term in the House, and as fellow Republican Tucsonan Marian Ann McClure has maxed out at four terms, a power vacuum was created.
In the district’s House seats, four Republicans and one Democrat are scrambling to fill it. They are Frank Antenori, R-Tucson; Sharon Collins, R-Sahuarita; Andrea Dalessandro, D-Sahuarita; David Gowan, R-Sierra Vista; and Doug Sposito, R-Sonoita.
Only Dalessandro is assured a safe passage through the Sept. 2 primary. Two of the Republicans will not make it. Dalessandro and the two remaining Republicans will vie for the two seats on Nov. 4.
District 30 covers Sierra Vista’s city limits, including Fort Huachuca, then stretches across northern Santa Cruz County and takes in eastern Pima County.

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Tucson Weekly July3, 2008

Take a Stand
For our seventh-annual Phoneys, we decided to give the candidates a call
By DAVE DEVINE
As America celebrates the 232nd anniversary of its revolt against an unresponsive British monarchy, the Tucson Weekly for the seventh time proudly presents its Phoney Awards to local public servants.
This year, the nominees for this prestigious award are Southern Arizona candidates running for seats in the state Legislature. The list of categories was determined by their response time to a phone call from a constituent. We used the numbers listed on the Secretary of State's Web site to call the candidates.
Campaigns for the Legislature usually don't generate much attention, so candidates might have lots of time on their hands. Some of them use it, obviously, to talk to voters who call, while others apparently just don't want to bother with that inconvenience.
Without further fanfare, the winners and losers of the 2008 Phoneys are:
HOME ALONE:
THE HOUSE
Several candidates for the Arizona House answered the phone themselves and talked to the constituent immediately. Whether they'll continue to do that if they get elected in November remains to be seen, but for now, that kind of response deserves special accolades. The nominees in this category are:
Trent Humphries (R-District 26)
Vic Williams (R-District 26)
Daniel Patterson (D-District 29)
Patricia Puig (D-District 29)
Andrea Dalessandro (D-District 30)
David Gowan (R-District 30)
THE WINNER IS:
Everyone. This kind of response, unlike that by King George III, lets people talk directly to their potential political leaders.

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JAIME RICHARDSON | GREEN VALLEY NEWS Democrat Andrea Dalessandro, left, discusses issues with Republicans Doug Sposito and Frank Antenori on Friday at a Green Valley Sahuarita Chamber of Commerce-sponsored candidates’ forum. The candidates, along with Republicans David Gowan and Sharon Collins, not pictured, are running for state representative in Legislative District 30.

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Guest Opinion
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 02.21.2008 in the Arizona Daily Star
Opinion by Andrea Dalessandro

In 2000, many legislators were hoodwinked into allowing payday loans in Arizona. The law is set to expire, or "sunset," in 2010 but Senate Bill 1239 seeks to postpone the ban until 2012. The leadership of the Legislature is attempting to delay solving the problem.

Payday loans are legalized loan sharking with fees that equal interest of 400 percent to 500 percent a year. My ethical, moral and economic values tell me that payday loans are not a reasonable credit option. If you are not sure about that, do a Google search for the word "usury."

Most voters of every political persuasion know that payday loans reflect negatively on Arizona. People who desperately need money find themselves in a worse financial situation after two weeks — the term for most payday loans. Most are trapped. A very small percentage of lucky ones learn their lesson after one payday loan and do not ever return.

The business model of payday-loan businesses is based on the fact that they want the fees and interest associated with rollovers of existing loans. Their goal is to have lasting relationships with their clients.

Payday loans not only harm borrowers, they drain money from our regional economy, often to out-of-state interests. Every dollar wasted on payday loan fees could be spent at local stores and businesses, contributing positively to our economic development.

Payday loans are predatory lending at its worst and take advantage of working people with limited resources. Seniors and the disabled are emerging as the new targeted customers, according to a Feb. 12 article in The Wall Street Journal.

Since I started collecting signatures in August to stop payday lending, I have met working people financially trapped by payday loans. Some have several loans with different payday-loan businesses.

The leadership of the Arizona House has consistently prevented reform bills from being heard. Reform measures have included lower interest rates and fees, a limit on rollovers and a registry to prevent multiple loans. When bills are offered in committee, the well-financed lobbyists swoop down on the legislators and many of them disregard the will of the voters.

State Rep. Marian McClure, R-Tucson, has been an indefatigable opponent of predatory lenders and is sponsoring the Stop Payday Loans initiative.

McClure is termed out of her House seat after this year and we will lose her as an advocate in the Legislature.

I am a strong advocate against payday loans and I will take up McClure's sword to continue her fight against these and other predatory lenders. I encourage readers to visit the Stop Payday Predators Web site stoppaydaypredators.com for more information. Please donate or volunteer to circulate petitions for the Stop Payday Loans initiative, and please sign the petition. Write to Andrea Dalessandro at Andrea4ld30@gmail.com

The following article was published in the Green Valley News and Sun on January 17, 2008 The article is presented below with permission of Green Valley News

Election 2008: Democrat says she’s running for House Quail Creek woman seeks state office Andrea Dalessandro

By Ellen Sussman, Special to the Green Valley News Published: Thursday, January 17, 2008 7:49 PM MST

Since 2005, Andrea Dalessandro, a Democrat precinct and state party committee person and resident of Quail Creek, has considered running for the Legislative District 30 seat.

She has filed the necessary papers with the Secretary of State's office in Tucson, officially announcing her plans to run.

Two District 30 seats are occupied by Republicans Jonathan Paton and Marian McClure. McClure will be “termed out” this year. Paton has filed exploratory papers for the State Senate, replacing State Senate President Tim Bee, who's expected to announce Saturday he’s challenging U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., for her congressional seat.

According to the latest filings, Dalessandro's potential opponents for the State House seat are Frank Antenori of Tucson, Sharon Collins of Sahuarita, Doug Sposito of Sonoita and David Gowan of Sierra Vista. All are Republicans.

To prepare for her first political campaign, Dalessandro took part in a six-month “Emerge” political leadership training program for Democratic women in 2007.

The program teaches women who are newcomers to political office the art of public speaking, fundraising, campaigns, networking and elections.

Dalessandro said three main issues are in the forefront of her decision to run — lack of support for public education, consumer protection issues including putting a stop to identity theft and predatory loans, and the state's growth and its impact on the environment and water supply.

She also would like to see more support for small businesses and passing a state law that would have personal credit records frozen with credit reporting agencies at no charge.

“This would help stop identity theft and is now law in 40 states. As it is now, Arizonans have to pay to have their credit records frozen… with open credit records anyone can apply for a credit card in someone else's name.”

Dalessandro said she's learned how the legislative system works. “I’ve attended 12 full sessions… I want to bring attention to issues that concern Southern Arizona residents; I feel that Phoenix doesn’t see us and forgets us.

“I've held focus groups with Democrats, Independents and Republicans all over the district and I’m overwhelmingly disappointed how things are going in the state with regards to education, the environment and water.”

About the environment, she said, “I'm concerned about maintaining the stewardship of Arizona. I was initially mesmerized by the beauty of the mountains in Scottsdale; now I don’t see that. I don’t want Southern Arizona to look like that.”

Moving from New Jersey to Quail Creek in August 2004, Dalessandro attended Rutgers University and earned a Masters in Business Administration in professional accounting.

A member of Valle Verde Rotary, the League of Women Voters, Supporting Seniors Impact Council of the United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona and the Coalition of Water Activist Citizens, she is married to Andrew Dalessandro and has one daughter, who is a neonatal intensive care nurse.

Paid for by DALESSANDRO 2008