A Phoenix City Council frontrunner's conflict of interest concern
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Ed Hermes is running for Phoenix City Council in District 4. Photo: Zach Buchanan/Axios
Phoenix City Council candidate Ed Hermes is also a partner at the largest law firm in the state, and if elected, he'd have to navigate significant conflict of interest concerns.
Why it matters: Hermes' firm, Snell & Wilmer, regularly has business involving the city — including lawsuits against it — and Hermes wouldn't be able to participate as a councilmember in anything involving his employer.
State of play: Hermes is considered the frontrunner in a crowded race to represent District 4 — he's raised the most campaign cash and has the most prominent endorsements.
- He's a non-equity partner at Snell, where he's worked since 2018, per his LinkedIn, and has served on the Osborn School District Governing Board and a city advisory committee.
What they're saying: Hermes tells Axios that he'll comply with city ethics guidelines around conflict of interest and recuse himself from both Snell work involving the city and council work involving Snell.
- "I will avoid any sort of perceptions of conflict," he says, adding that such conflicts are "not going to be something that comes up much."
Reality check: The day Hermes spoke with Axios, a Snell lobbyist spoke on behalf of a client during a council hearing on the city's major "Rio Reimagined" project in South Phoenix.
- After the lobbyist's remarks, Mayor Kate Gallego noted that the city had been in court a day earlier defending itself in a lawsuit brought by Snell on behalf of a data center client.
Zoom in: Snell has 13 registered lobbyists representing more than 260 clients, per its latest disclosure with the city.
- According to records reviewed by Axios, Snell has represented clients in matters voted on by the council at least eight times since the start of 2025.
Friction point: Even if Hermes follows every state and city ethics guideline, he can't fully dispel the perception of a conflict of interest, says Joan McGregor, the director of ASU's Lincoln Center of Applied Ethics.
- Plus, anyone with an interest before the council could simply hire Snell to nullify Hermes' vote.
- "It just seems like all the way around a bad idea to have somebody like that running for City Council," McGregor tells Axios.
The intrigue: If a councilmember does commit an ethical violation, it's unclear what would become of it.
- Ethics complaints are investigated by the city ethics commission, which is currently down a member and so requires a unanimous vote from the remaining four to send a complaint to the council.
- The commission hasn't sent the council a single complaint in its history.
- If it did, it requires seven of nine council votes — or, if a complaint involves a councilmember, seven of the remaining eight — to accept the recommendation and impose sanctions.
What's next: Voting continues through Nov. 3.
- If no candidate receives more than 50% — likely, given the expanded field — the top two finishers will advance to a March runoff.