Nikki Check, former mayor of Jerome and a self-described “Conservative, moderate Democrat,” has announced her campaign to represent District 3 on Yavapai County’s Board of Supervisors.
“I think people should vote for me because I have personal integrity, fiscal accountability and an understanding of how to balance economic growth with conservation and open space,” Check said.
Check is a second-generation Arizonan who was born in Prescott and has lived in Jerome for the last 15 years, where she is currently renovating a historic home. She has also worked for Yavapai College and served as a board member for the Verde Valley Wine Consortium and the Verde River Basin Partnership. She also ran for Arizona State Senate District 6 before Sedona rejoined District 1 at the start of 2023.
“Check has spent the past 10 years working in the Arizona wine industry where she began as a field worker for Merkin Vineyards and Caduceus Cellars in 2008, eventually becoming a vineyard manager,” her biography at ArizonaWineGuide.com stated. “She became the founding director of viticulture at Yavapai College’s Southwest Wine Center in 2009, where she led the program’s first class, developed a two-year degree program, established a 13-acre vineyard and transformed a racquetball court into a 3,000-case winemaking facility.”
Mayor of Jerome
“I have a son who is 8-and-a-half,” Check said. “I’m looking forward to representing the working parents of the Verde Valley, which is where my civic duty began. I stepped onto [Jerome] council in 2011, and became mayor shortly thereafter.”
In Jerome, whichever council candidate receives the most votes automatically assumes the role of mayor. Check first learned she would be in that position when she began receiving congratulatory texts while hiking at the Grand Canyon.
“It was an encouraging way to start and it shaped the way I view politics,” Check said. “It’s best if you’re asked by people [who] see you as a leader. That’s how I started my journey into my civic duty. It was probably three of my neighbors [who] knocked on my door and said, ‘We think you’d be a great council member, would you consider putting your hat in the ring?’ That’s how it started, it [was] never on my list of things to do. But I began to realize how important it is, and how impactful local government can be for the people that live here.”
Check described the learning curve involved in going from city council to mayor as “wonderful.” “I consider myself a lifelong learner, I love to learn new things,” she said.
“That was part of what I enjoyed and continue to enjoy about politics. There’s always something new to learn. Even if you get more comfortable [with] the duty, there’s always new issues. The job essentially is always a large portion of learning, no matter where you are and your experience level. So I just loved it. I loved talking with the water people about our water system and talking with the public works people about our 100-year old infrastructure, and the details matter. What I came to understand is that a good public servant takes the time to listen to those that do have the experience [and] knowledge.”
Race for Supervisor Check announced her run in a Facebook post on Wednesday, Nov. 29. The seat is currently held by Democrat Donna Michaels, who narrowly defeated Republican Randy Garrison by 179 votes in the November 2020 general election.
The 2024 primary election will take place on Tuesday, Aug. 6, and the last day to register to vote in the primary is Monday, July, 8.
“In today’s politics, it seems like partisanship is severe and separating, and I think Nikki Check’s more of a centrist,” said Yavapai County Treasurer Chip Davis, former District 3 supervisor, who added that he is likely to endorse Check. “I think she’s got common sense and is going to do what’s right regardless of what party somebody may belong [to]. She’s going to do whatever’s right for our county and our communities.”
After 20 years as a Republican county supervisor, Davis worked for Democratic U.S. Rep. Tom O’Halleran from 2017 to 2020 before becoming county treasurer. He said he encouraged Check to run for the seat, as others had when she ran for Jerome City Council.
“I’m always on the outlook for up-and-coming leaders, whether it’s county government or local or state government,” Davis said. “When you see young people that have that potential to try to encourage them and help them and keep our passing of the baton to good smart people, [that’s] what good government hinges on.”
Check said that she struggled with her decision to run and that the decision came down to her being a supporter of voter choice. “I wanted to stay true to who I am, which is a conservative, moderate Democrat,” Check said. “I didn’t feel it was worth switching into the independent realm. I didn’t want to give up where I started, just for the strategy behind a race.”
“This is America, everybody is encouraged, what we need is more people to run for office … I feel strongly that the work that I’ve done, and the accomplishments that we have enjoyed and are continuing to enjoy don’t require a change of supervisor,” Michaels said in response to Check’s announcement. “I’m prepared to support my record, and make my case on that and welcome anybody to come in. If they feel like they long for some particular reason to be a supervisor and know the kind of work that I do and have done. It’ll be a stimulating debate, and I welcome it.”
If Elected
One of the points that Check sees as an example of good governance by the current board of supervisors is its work to establish a state park at the headwaters of the Upper Verde.
“I think that’s super smart, and it’s really going to contribute a lot to our region,” Check said. “It’s another state park treasure, which we have several. But it [would be] a huge win, especially for western Yavapai County.”
An issue that Check raised with the board of supervisors was its unanimous decision on Nov. 1 to award supervisors a vehicle allowance of $800 per month as a consent agenda item.
“The legislature sets the salary for all county supervisors and I think that I’m going to be critical of the board. I think that they found an avenue around that,” Check said. “[That’s an] $800 stipend for each supervisor, per month. That adds up to a whole other funded position. I think that at least the community should deserve an opportunity to make a comment on that or hear the plan or hear the rationale, but to put it on their consent agenda? It just isn’t right.”
Check also called attention to what she described as Michaels’ “poor meeting attendance record.”
“One thing that I really care about, that I don’t see happening as much under [Michael’s] tenure, is due process,” Check said. “Really taking that collaborative approach and going the extra mile to make sure that all procedures are happening. I also am really careful not to make promises that I can’t fulfill. I think several times, I’ve seen her make promises that she didn’t have the authority to fulfill. It’s not a hugely personal race, I don’t really dislike her. But on the professional level, I do see some faults there.”
Michaels’ Record
The Sedona Red Rock News has reported on several incidents since Michaels’ first meeting on the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors on Jan. 6, 2021.
While county supervisors may fill vacancies on the commission with nominees from their district, they do not have the power to fire commissioners, and no statute provides for them to appoint new commissioners upon election. Mumaw resigned but Lindner refused and Michaels appointed Charlie Pitcher, whose wife Rhoda donated to Michaels election campaign.
“That was a private letter from me to the, at the time, town Mayor Dr. Jack Dillenberg, and he apologized for asking me to help him in a premature way that — at least it was interpreted as a premature way,” Michaels said. “I’m a nationally-certified hearing official, very comfortable with due process and have used it in my past and I certainly would put my record up against anybody’s in making sure that the due process that takes place.”
Michaels’ statement is untrue. Her March 4, 2021, letter to Dillenberg was sent on Michaels’ official Yavapai County letterhead, from her official and public Yavapai County email address and signed “Donna Michaels, Ph.D., Supervisor, District 3,” indicating she was sending the letter in her official capacity. The letter thus immediately became a public record.
Additionally, all letters from public officials to public officials on public matters are by law public records.
Michaels’ public letter was rescinded and declared void nearly immediately — a day later on March 5 — by Yavapai County Board of Supervisors Chairman Craig Brown, who publicly announced to the residents of Jerome, “Supervisor Michaels does not have the statutory authority to authorize this action. Further, this action is contrary to federal and state COVID-19 guidelines that govern the vaccination effort. This letter is to inform you that the directive from Supervisor Michaels is void and of no effect.”
• Michaels proposed in June that the county should purchase the former Big Park Community School in the Village of Oak Creek and said at the time that she had reached an agreement with Verde Valley Caregivers to provide services at the property, an agreement that VVCC executive director Kent Ellsworth confirmed did not exist.
“It’s a wonderful office that I hold. I have an immense, nonpartisan constituent base that continues to grow, because of my focus on what I promised when I first entered the candidacy in 2020, which is to be engaged with our community in a way to advocate for them and their values and I fully intend to keep doing that,” Michaels said.
