A former Maricopa City Council member is officially the first challenger in the race for a seat in the House.
Julia Gusse submitted her candidate statement of interest Jan. 20 to run for state representative in Legislative District 16, according to public records. Gusse is the first Democrat to enter the race since former Rep. Keith Seaman (D-Casa Grande) lost to Rep. Chris Lopez (R-Casa Grande).
Democratic challenger Elaine Aldrete of Tucson also filed a candidate statement of interest to run for the seat on Jan. 21, records show.
“I am getting ready to retire after almost 15 years of state service and I’ll have some free time on my hands,” she laughed during a phone interview last night. “I really just want to represent Maricopa in a different platform. Since I’ve already served as a council member, I’m ready to move onto state representative.”
A U.S. Air Force veteran, Gusse currently works as a legislative liaison with the Arizona Department of Veterans Services. She previously served as director of Arizona State University’s Veterans Upward Bound program and, during the Biden administration, worked as a senior advisor for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Those years in the Air Force and her work with and for veterans ultimately inspired her to run.
“My ultimate goal is to make Arizona the best state for our veteran population,” Gusse said. “After serving at the White House for the Department of Veterans Affairs, I realize there are many, many veterans in Arizona that don’t know the benefits of their service. I’d love to make Arizona more desirable for veterans to come live in.”
In a political climate she described as increasingly polarized, Gusse said she hopes her track record in bipartisanship resonates with voters, particularly as progress stalls at the State Capitol.
“I’ve seen many bills come through to the state level and because we have a House and a Senate majority that are the opposing party of the governor, so many bills are getting vetoed,” she said. “We’re not getting anything done, nobody’s compromising and no one’s coming to any agreement and our veterans deserve better. Our communities deserve better.”
Gusse served two terms on the Maricopa City Council. She was first elected to a four-year seat in 2010 and reelected in 2016.
In 2018, Gusse filed an ethics complaint against Councilmember Vincent Manfredi related to criticism of a reporter for the Maricopa Monitor. The complaint was later withdrawn following an apology.
In 2020, InMaricopa publisher Scott Bartle filed a separate complaint against Gusse, alleging she used her council seat to damage his business. An attorney determined Gusse had not violated the ethics code, and councilmembers cleared her of the charges.
Vincent Manfredi is the owner of InMaricopa.
![Maricopa Police Chief Mark Goodman speaks to Maricopa City Council while presenting his department's annual report on April 7, 2026. [Monica D. Spencer]](https://inmaricopa.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/GOV-Crime-Stats-by-Monica-D-Spencer-300x200.jpg)
9 Responses
“I’ll have some free time on my hands,” she laughed… good for you stay at home, bake some cookies or whatever…don’t need another useless politician sucking of the tax payer teat…
Are you saying that because she’s a woman? It really sounds like you’re telling her to “get back in the kitchen”.
Wow, you really have been brainwashed…men bake cookies too, make you feel better? Now go make your bed before one of your dads gets mad at you….
Hey man, I was just asking for clarification. As I said on the “pleads guilty” article, I am NOT someone who is “brainwashed” or whatever you want to call me. I also don’t have two dads, ya crap. My parents are divorced, so how about you screw off. You genuinely need to stop it with this stuff. It helps NO ONE, and it especially does not help any arguments/claims you make.
Sorry, I meant the “Venezuelan pleads not guilty” article.
Oh, and of course you don’t reply to what I said on that article, either. Oh well, I knew it was unlikely that you’d reply back.
Its ok Nancy, we know your parents divorce ruined you, but you dont have to lash out because you have failed at life.
My name isn’t “nancy” and the divorce of my parents did not “ruin” me. Stop this utter idiocy unless you want to keep proving that you’re a rude imbecile who doesn’t know anything about respecting others. It’d be of benefit to everyone, including yourself, if you were to better yourself and stop being like this.
Good Lord not her again!She has been nothing but negative for the city until she was tapped for the Biden(Obama.. Clinton…who knows)administration.Her rederic as a council member was all about dividing the city because she didn’t get her way.Just search the archives of InMaricopa.com and find out for yourselves.She wasn’t good for our city and will not be good as our representative in the 16th district.Please,let’s not go backwards by voting Ms Gusse into
Power again.