# John Giles (mayor)

John C. Giles (born 1960), an attorney and American politician, served as the 40th mayor of Mesa, Arizona. A Republican, Giles previously served as a member of the Mesa City Council from 1996 to 2000. Giles was elected mayor of Mesa in a 2014 special election following the resignation of Mayor Scott Smith and was succeeded by former Mesa Councilman Mark Freeman in 2025 after he won the 2024 election.

## Early life and career

Giles was born in Mesa, Arizona. He graduated from Westwood High School in 1978. He served a two-year mission for his church in South Korea from 1979-1981. He attended Brigham Young University, graduating with a political science degree in 1984. Giles received his JD from Arizona State University's Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law in 1987.
Giles works as a lawyer with the firm Giles & Dickson. Giles was the president of the East Valley Bar Association from 1992 until 1993. Giles is an adjunct professor at Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

## Political career

Giles was elected to the Mesa City Council in 1996, serving until 2000, including a term as vice mayor from 1998 until 2000.
Following Mayor Scott Smith's resignation in 2014, Giles was elected mayor in a special election, for a term lasting until 2017. He was sworn in on September 18, 2014.
In 2016, Giles was reelected to a full four-year term, which lasted until 2021. He was again reelected in 2020 and began his second full term in January 2021. He was succeeded by Mark Freeman in 2025.
In 2021, Giles led the adoption of a city nondiscrimination ordinance.
Giles served as co-chair of the US Conference of Mayor's Veterans Homelessness Task Force. Under his leadership, the city aimed to house more homeless veterans. During Giles’ 2020 term, he focused on the Off the Streets Program. As Chair of the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG), Giles started the program in 2021 to help combat homelessness, not just for veterans, but for all of the residents within Mesa. In 2023, Mesa City Council approved the purchase of a hotel to serve as an emergency shelter facility for the Off the Streets program.
In 2021, Giles supported the creation of the Mesa College Promise to provide a free community college education to qualified students. He supported expansion of the Mesa College Promise to adult learners in 2024.
In 2024, Giles opposed bipartisan Arizona state legislation to increase housing supply in the state amid a housing shortage. The legislation proposed to restrict the abilities of Arizona cities to mandate home owners associations, minimum home sizes, and community amenities. Giles argued that "silencing our neighborhoods is not the solution to the housing crisis."
Giles endorsed Democrat Mark Kelly over Republican Blake Masters in the 2022 U.S. Senate election. The Arizona Republican Party censured Giles over his endorsement of Kelly. He endorsed Democrat Kamala Harris in the 2024 United States presidential election over Donald Trump, the Republican nominee. He and former Arizona representative Robin Shaw co-chaired the state chapter of Republicans for Harris. He spoke at the 2024 Democratic National Convention on August 20.
In December 2024, the Mesa City Council voted unanimously to approve an increase in the costs of water, wastewater, and other utilities.
In 2022, Giles requested federal funds in order to improve transportation, and the city received a $16 million grant through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act. Giles' goal is a 40 percent increase in charging stations for electric vehicles along with expansion of the Tempe street car into Mesa. The city has adopted a climate action plan with a goal of using 100 percent renewable energy and being carbon neutral by 2050. Giles supported the renewal of Prop 400, a half a cent transportation tax in Maricopa County. The Maricopa Association of Government says that 53 percent, or about 14 billion, of the street car plan would come from Prop 400 extension.
In 2023, Giles was appointed by the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation to the Electric Vehicle Working Group, a federal committee charged with guiding the widespread adoption of electric vehicles across the country.

## Personal life

Giles and his wife, Dawn have five children and eight grandchildren. Giles is a marathoner and triathlete who has completed two full Ironman competitions, twenty marathons, including four Boston Marathons.
Giles is the host of It's Always Cool in Mesa, a podcast that shares the stories behind some of Mesa, Arizona's most popular outdoor adventures, culinary treasures, and unique history.

## Electoral history

Giles' most recent electoral victory took place in the 2020 non partisan primary, receiving just over 66% of the votes over opponent Verl Farnsworth. Giles received more than $250,000 in campaign donations. Farnsworth questioned the legality of the donations, although Giles said the donations were in accordance with election law. City finance and taxes were issues in the mayoral campaign.
Giles received over 50% of the vote in the primary, meaning no run-off election was required.
Prior Elections
2014 Special Election
Giles was first elected mayor in 2014. Giles ran on the platform of keeping the trajectory for the city set by his predecessor. Opponent Danny Ray argued the current direction was the wrong direction. Giles received over 72% of the votes.
2016 Election
Giles was reelected to his mayoral post in 2016, winning 99% of the vote as an uncontested candidate.
Leaving Office
The Mesa mayoral post has a two term limit. Giles reached this limit and was unable to run again in 2024. He was succeeded by city councilman Mark Freeman.
2020 Mesa mayoral election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | John Giles (incumbent) | 60,473 | 66.25 |
| | Nonpartisan | Verl Farnsworth | 30,452 | 33.36 |
| | Write-in | Write-ins | 357 | 0.39 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 91,282 | 100.00 |
Mesa mayoral election, 2016 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | John Giles | 53,273 | 99.01% |
| | Write-in | Write-ins | 353 | 0.99% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 53,808 | 100.0% |
Mesa Mayoral Special Election, 2014 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | John Giles | 33,177 | 72.7% |
| | Nonpartisan | Danny Ray | 12,483 | 27.3% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 45,660 | 100.0% |
Mesa City Council election, 1996 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | John Giles | 17,426 | 23.2% |
| | Nonpartisan | T. Farrell Jensen | 15,949 | 21.2% |
| | Nonpartisan | Dennis Kavanaugh | 13,481 | 17.9% |
| | Nonpartisan | Lillian Wilkinson | 10,407 | 13.8% |
| | Nonpartisan | Dana B. Harper | 10,053 | 13.4% |
| | Nonpartisan | David Molina | 7,831 | 10.4% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 75,147 | 100.0% |
Mesa City Council at-large primary, 1996 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | John Giles | 14,392 | 15.8% |
| | Nonpartisan | T. Farrell Jensen | 11,861 | 13.1% |
| | Nonpartisan | Lillian Wilkinson | 10,885 | 12.0% |
| | Nonpartisan | David Molina | 10,070 | 11.1% |
| | Nonpartisan | Dennis Kavanaugh | 9,848 | 10.8% |
| | Nonpartisan | Dana B. Harper | 9,635 | 10.6% |
| | Nonpartisan | Michael D. Whiting | 9,196 | 10.1% |
| | Nonpartisan | Manuel Cortez | 5,873 | 6.5% |
| | Nonpartisan | David A. Wier | 5,403 | 6.0% |
| | Nonpartisan | John Robie | 6,639 | 4.0% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 90,802 | 100.0% |