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No endorsement
The race
The Manistee Precinct, in Glendale, elects a justice of the peace this cycle. A justice of the peace presides over the precinct's justice court — traffic and misdemeanor cases, civil claims up to $10,000, evictions, and orders of protection. Arizona does not require a justice of the peace to be an attorney, and the office carries a four-year term. This race is on the November 3, 2026 general-election ballot as a vote, not a cancelled election: Arizona's cancellation statute, A.R.S. § 16-410, by its terms covers only elections held under Title 15, Title 48, or § 16-822, and Ballotpedia's general-election tables list this race on the general ballot with a single candidate. The sole general-election candidate is Lizbeth Feria (Republican), who won the Republican nomination in a primary that also included Lennie McCloskey, per Ballotpedia's primary table. The sitting justice of the peace, Donald Watts, is not on the general ballot.
Lizbeth "Liz" Feria (Republican) comes to the race from inside a courtroom, per her campaign biography: she served as both Senior Courtroom Clerk and Deputy Clerk in the Santa Cruz County Superior Court, assisting judges, drafting minute entries, and managing filings. She holds a Master of Legal Studies from the University of Arizona, is a Certified Legal Document Preparer and a Notary Public, and earned a bachelor's degree in Spanish with a concentration in translation and interpretation — she is fully bilingual. Born and raised in Nogales, Arizona, she now lives in Glendale, serves on the Glendale Arts Commission (elected its chairman for 2026, per her campaign), and volunteers monthly at the city's food distribution program. Credits: a decade-plus, per her campaign, across the legal system and public administration, including the clerk's-eye view of due process this job runs on. Dirt: no documented controversy or discipline surfaced in this pass's searches.
OUR CALL
Our call: no endorsement — uncontested race. Feria's clerk experience is directly relevant and documented by her campaign, but she has not held judicial office, her biography is campaign-sourced rather than independently profiled, and voters have no alternative on this ballot to weigh her against. Search documented: Ballotpedia's primary and general tables, the candidate's campaign biography page, and the county's Running For Office page — no news profile or controversy was returned.
For the complete Election 2026 breakdown — every race, claim by claim — see the full coverage on our website.
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--- Sources
- Ballotpedia, Municipal elections in Maricopa County, Arizona (2026) — general-election tables — https://ballotpedia.org/Municipal_elections_in_Maricopa_County,_Arizona_(2026)
- Feria for Justice of the Peace (campaign biography) — https://lizferiaforjp.com/liz-feria-for-jp/
- Maricopa County Elections, Running For Office — justice of the peace and constable offices on the 2026 primary and general election cycle, four-year terms — https://Elections.Maricopa.Gov/candidates/running-for-office.html
- Arizona Revised Statutes § 16-410 (cancellation of certain elections — by its terms limited to elections under Title 15, Title 48, or § 16-822) — https://www.azleg.gov/ars/16/00410.htm
Result pending. No verified call (Associated Press or official) as of November 4, 2026. This page will be updated when the race is called or certified. The original article above is unchanged.
AI-assisted article — but the sources are human, and the facts are very real.