Matt Evans, a University alum who graduated with a bachelor's degree in computer science in 2021, is building a slate of Republican candidates to run for Phoenix City Council in 2026.
Evans is running for District 2, which encompasses north Phoenix and already has a self-described Republican incumbent ineligible for re-election. Michael Del Prete, the executive director of the Arizona Real Estate Investors Association, joined Evans to run for District 6 in south and east Phoenix.
"We are a few great leaders away from changing the trajectory of our city, but we don't have that right now," Evans said.
Evans already ran for the district in 2022 but lost to council member Jim Waring, who did not respond to a request for comment. Evans said he ran as an independent.
While citywide elections in Phoenix are nonpartisan, Evans said there is a 6-2 ideological split on the City Council that favors Democrats. The mayor, Kate Gallego, is also a Democrat.
Evans unsuccessfully ran for mayor against Gallego in 2024 — she was re-elected with 62.16% of the vote, according to Maricopa County officials.
"We saw how it went," Evans said. "The results kind of went along the party registration lines."
Now, Evans is organizing Take Back Phoenix, an effort to recruit candidates to run for districts 2, 4, 6 and 8 in the next City Council elections. Although Evans is a Republican and the rhetoric surrounding TBP tends to be conservative, he's said there is no partisan agenda.
Councilmember Kevin Robinson, who is currently serving for District 6 — the district Del Prete wishes to run for — was unaware of TBP, but he said all candidates should be dedicated to helping the city.
"I truly hope anybody who wants to serve the city of Phoenix (is) thinking about it as a whole, not just one particular issue," Robinson said.
Evans said TBP is meant to replace career politicians with average citizens.
"They're just regular people like me," Evans said. "Natives of Phoenix that bring common sense back to City Hall and represent us and, most importantly, focus on the people they represent."
While Evans has not revealed candidates for districts 4 and 8, he said that Phoenicians can expect to see such an announcement before June.
When Evans was running for mayor, Del Prete brought him on his company's podcast, the AZREIA Show. After the election, Evans returned to the podcast for a retrospective account that influenced Del Prete to run for City Council himself.
"Matt could be himself and get all this attention, almost be mayor, and he wants to do this slate and make things better in our communities," Del Prete said. "He's a straight-shooter, regular guy that wants better."
Neither Evans nor Del Prete studied or trained in politics. Evans is a software engineer and an Uber driver, while Del Prete runs his own investment business.
However, both of them said they noticed major issues in Phoenix that they did not believe were being adequately addressed. Homelessness came up for both of them.
As a software engineer, Evans said his career led him to try and assess the root causes of homelessness and find solutions, as driving for Uber exposed him to parts of Phoenix he hadn't seen before.
Del Prete said he brings a business perspective that is currently lacking on the City Council.
Evans said he received an associate degree from Paradise Valley Community College earlier in his life but came to the University more recently to obtain his bachelor's degree. He said he wanted the credentials to ensure job security.
While his time at the University did not directly lead him into politics, Evans credits it with giving him the skills he needed to manage his campaigns.
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"It taught me responsibility," Evans said. "It taught me how to focus and be proactive and get the job done."
As a father of three children and a full-time employee, Evans said his time at the University required him to balance those duties with school — a skill he said is applicable to him running for office.
Evans said people who haven't studied politics or don't have a direct link to the political world should still get involved in their communities.
"We need young people to take responsibility for our country and for our state," Evans said. "It's going to be hard, but do it."
Edited by George Headley, Abigail Beck and Natalia Jarrett.
Reach the reporter at coyer1@asu.edu and follow @carstenoyer on X.
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Carsten is a freshman studying journalism and mass communication. This is his first semester with The State Press. He also worked as his high school's newspaper editor-in-chief.
