Political Notebook: ‘Evil Torta,’ three other weird Tucson signs, explained

“Evil Torta,” said the first ones, scrawled by hand.

Since then, there have been more sophisticated printed signs advertising a website, eviltorta.com, and a variety of other slogans, including “Communist Hag” and “Steals Money,” each of which has its own website.

They are all the brainchild of a local man, Raoul Garza, and his supporters, who are campaigning against what they see as socialist candidates practicing government overreach.

His opponents see them as sexist attacks against Rep. Adelita Grijalva. So does Grijalva herself.

“The signs are disgusting and reek of misogyny,” her spokesman Nate Sigal said by text. “Does he really expect anyone to believe it’s a coincidence that they are all placed next to the congresswoman’s signs?

What would make the signs misogynistic is the reference to “torta.” The word, in Mexican Spanish, refers primarily to a sandwich, but in increasingly popular slang, it refers to overweight Latinas.

But Garza said the reference is not to Grijalva, although his earliest signs were placed strictly adjacent to hers. In an interview Wednesday and on his website, he describes the phrase as applying to a variety of Democratic candidates, including Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, a man.

The site lists Gov. Katie Hobbs, Attorney General Kris Mayes, Fontes, congressional candidate Joanna Mendoza, Grijalva and Rep. Alma Hernandez as part of the “evil torta” group.

Garza also lists “good tortas”: Rep. Andy Biggs, who is running for governor, state treasurer candidate Elijah Norton, Rep. Juan Ciscomani, Grijalva’s opponent Dan Butierez, and state senate candidate Douglas Everett.

All the “evil tortas” are Democrats, and all the good tortas are Republicans. All the evil tortas except one are women; all the good tortas are men.

Garza, a 44-year-old Marine Corps veteran, said he is from Texas but lived in Los Angeles from about 2005 to 2013, when he moved to Tucson. The 2020 pandemic shutdowns activated his political instincts, he said.

“When the government started shutting businesses down, it made me really question what was going on,” Garza said. “I just didn’t ever foresee the government doing something like that to its constituents.”

His broader objections are to what he considers government overreach and unconstitutional actions by officeholders, he said.

Garza formed a nonprofit organization on Aug. 4 called Citizens for Liberty and said he has established it under section 501(c) 4 of the Internal Revenue Code. These “social welfare” groups can engage in political activity, with some limits and don’t have to disclose their donors.

In July, before Citizens for Liberty was formed, Tucson Democrat Scott Blades removed one of Garza’s crude, handwritten signs where it was placed just above a Grijalva sign, he acknowledged. Blades contends the sign was nothing more than litter under the law, since it contained no reference to who paid for it, and didn’t address whether it was related to a candidate or committee.

That’s what the chair of the Pima County Democratic Party, Eric Robbins, thinks as well.

“Lacking the proper political notifications on the sign, it’s actually just littering,” he said. “As far as I’m concerned they’re roadside trash.”

Garza thinks he’s conforming to the law “because the sign states the trade name, which is the name of the organization, and it’s also a website. When you go to the website, it declares there who the one hosting the website is, which is Citizens for Liberty.”

The same information is at the bottom of the websites Stealsmoney.com and Communisthag.com, Garza’s other related websites.

Both of those sites feature acronyms that push the boundaries of coherence. Communist Hag, he says, stands for “Communist Hallucinating Aspiring Governmenters,” while Steals Money stands for “Standardize Taxes To End All Liberal Socialist Money.”

“Evil torta” seems like common sense in comparison.

Everett says he’s ‘approachable’

One of the other unusual signs along Tucson’s streets this election season belongs to Doug Everett, the Republican candidate for state senate in Legislative District 18. The signs feature the word “APPROACHABLE.”

It’s hard to tell when driving past the signs, but above the word is the outline of an airplane landing on a runway with “18 R” printed on it.

“My campaign designed an aviation-themed logo (airplane and runway) because of the important role aerospace plays in the community, and recognizing my 37-year career in the aerospace industry,” Everett said in an email. “I have a private pilot license, too. The airliner on approach is a play on the word APPROACHABLE. The runway shown is Runway 18R (18 Right), indicating I am the Republican candidate in LD18.”

What makes him approachable in real life, he said, is that he’s a Clean Elections candidate, which means he’s not always fundraising, plus he’s out in the community. Unlike opponent Sen. Priya Sundareshan, who has a full-time job and two school-age children, Everett said, he is retired and runs his campaign full time.

Sundareshan said her only full-time job is at the state Senate and that she considers herself quite approachable.

Put Biggs on your calendar

One of the most common signs around the Tucson area promotes Rep. Andy Biggs’ candidacy for governor in an unusual way: Beseeching voters to remember.

“This election: Do not forget” the top of the signs proclaims. In the middle it says “Vote Biggs,” and in case you’ve forgotten already, the bottom of the sign says “Make a Plan to Vote!”

In this era of brains crippled by attention deficit from cell phones and social media, it may not be such a bad idea. But it wasn’t the Biggs campaign’s idea. The signs are put out by Turning Point PAC - Arizona.

Asked about the signs, Biggs campaign spokesman Drew Sexton said, “Based off the traditional dropoff of voters in a midterm election cycle, we do believe it is critically important to remind folks of the importance of voting early and not sitting this election cycle out.”

‘Juan + Donald’ says who?

Around town, near signs for Rep. Juan Ciscomani, you’ll also find signs that feature a red heart on a blue background with the phrase “Juan + Donald” printed on it. The idea is pretty clear: Tie Ciscomani to Trump, since the president is unpopular now.

But who is behind the signs? That’s a mystery despite the phrasing printed on the bottom: “Paid for by Concerned AZ Citizens. Not authorized by any campaign or campaign committee.”

Who those citizens are is anyone’s guess — there’s no listing for that name on the Secretary of State’s website. Like the Evil Torta and associated signs, this may not offer enough disclosure under state law.