Phoenix-based marketing and advertising agency RIESTER and the Arizona Media Association will produce and broadcast the candidate debates this election season.

The Citizens Clean Elections Commission made the announcement Friday.

The collaborative effort will include debates for the U.S. Senate and Congressional races, as well as Corporation Commission races for this year’s primary and general elections. The agreement will ensure optimal technologies, processes and productions for Arizona media outlets that broadcast debates and that the debates are available to all voters, according to the press release.

“Many Arizona races are already a national topic, and the expectation is set for debates that provide visibility into the plans and policies of candidates,” Clean Elections Executive Director Tom Collins stated. “Voters rely on Clean Elections to provide candidate debates that are nonpartisan, accessible, and fair. Our final decision on a partner for debates was guided by these principles, while keeping in mind a second, equally critical audience: members of the media who are stewards of civic engagement and providers of information to voters.”

For more than 20 years Clean Elections has been the state’s only nonpartisan debate sponsor and has produced hundreds of local, state, and federal debates.

“We believe that the combined competencies of RIESTER and the AMA are solid footing to produce debates that will reach all voters and give all candidates a level playing field to make their case to their constituencies,” Clean Elections Voter Education Director Gina Roberts stated.

RIESTER and the AMA responded to a public request for information titled Clean Elections 2024 Candidate Debates by the deadline date of Jan. 12, 2024.

“This relationship will allow us to make every debate available to hundreds of local media brands on radio, TV, in partnership with newspapers and across countless digital platforms with the goal of reaching every voter in our state,” Arizona Media Association President and CEO Chris Kline stated.

The Citizens Clean Elections Commission was established by Arizona voters to restore citizen participation and confidence in the state’s political system and to improve the integrity of state government and freedom of speech.

“In this new age of misinformation, RIESTER is highly motivated and honored to work with the Citizens Clean Elections Commission and the AMA’s hundreds of media members statewide,” RIESTER Founder and CEO Tim Riester stated.

Visit www.azcleanelections.gov.

Independent Newsmedia is a member of the Arizona Media Association. President & CEO Charlene Bisson  serves as a  sustaining member on the Board of Directors.