(Photos by KJZZ)

Ann Kirkpatrick and John McCain

During the race to represent Arizona in the United States Senate, Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick has been touting term limits, saying her Republican rival John McCain has been in Washington too long.

Meanwhile, McCain has been trying to paint Kirkpatrick as too liberal for Arizona and a rubber stamp for the Obama administration.

But those campaign messages don’t mean as much to some Arizonans who see their votes as more personal.

Yolanda Morales describes herself as an educated, Republican Latina. She met John McCain decades ago when he was invited to crown the queen at a rodeo she attended. 

“He knows how to connect with people, he’s a strong communicator,” she said. “He’s a strong family man and that resonates with Hispanic families.” 

While Morales has voted for the five-term senator every time he’s run, Pat Montroy fell off the McCain train years ago.

"Because I thought he was a maverick, middle of the road, not afraid to buck his party when needed,” he said. “But I don’t see that anymore in him.” 

The registered independent and union sheet-metal worker plans to vote for Ann Kirkpatrick, largely because she supports for the Davis-Bacon Act. It requires certain federal contractors to pay no less than the locally prevailing wages and benefits for work on similar projects. 

“It’s about keeping our middle-class incomes instead of a race to the bottom,” he said. “It’s about continuing to build up the middle class.” 

Kirkpatrick has been hammering McCain for not withdrawing his support of Donald Trump sooner and hopes his initial endorsement will send voters her way. Not Morales though.  While disappointed that McCain supported Trump at all, she wants him to return to Washington — but not with Trump. The registered Republican said she’ll vote for Hillary Clinton.