19-Year-Old Sebastian Matta Wins Maricopa County Clerk Election
Sebastian Matta, a 19-year-old Democrat, defeated Republican Jeff Dial to become the Clerk of the Superior Court for Maricopa County.
Democratic candidate Sebastian Matta, a 19-year-old sophomore at Arizona State University, won the election for Clerk of the Superior Court for Maricopa County on Tuesday. Matta secured 53% of the vote, totaling more than 740,000 votes, to defeat former Republican state senator Jeff Dial. The victory ends a Republican hold on the position that dated back to before the 1980s and coincided with broader Democratic gains in Arizona, including the party's first statehouse majorities in six decades.
Starting in January, Matta will oversee a $65 million budget and approximately 670 employees responsible for managing court records, marriage licenses, and child support. To accommodate the role, Matta intends to transition to part-time college study. His primary goals include increasing court accessibility by allowing probate cases to be initiated online and expanding staff interpreters for languages such as Korean, Urdu, and Haitian Creole.
Matta stated he will spend the first several months of his tenure building relationships with staff and ensuring job security before implementing campaign changes. Republican opponent Jeff Dial conceded the race, noting that while he supports young people getting involved in politics, he believes candidates should learn more before taking over a large department.
