Leading up to the November election, pollsters across the nation showed Arizona to be one of the most swingy of the swing states. How Arizonans would vote in the presidential race and down-ballot contests were the equivalent of a coin flip.
But as results were tallied over the past few days, it is clear now which party won convincingly.
The race for the 1st Congressional District in north Phoenix and Scottsdale and the 6th Congressional District in the Tucson area and southeastern Arizona both landed red in contests that felt like could be any party’s win. Republican incumbents David Schweikert and Juan Ciscomani won their districts, respectively.
The roles of Maricopa County sheriff and Maricopa County recorder went to Republicans Jerry Sheridan and Justin Heap.
On Nov. 12, Republican Steve Montenegro was voted speaker of the Arizona House and Republican Warren Petersen won the vote to return as Arizona Senate president. Both chambers ended up majority Republican.
It’s not necessarily the red wave effect, though. All of these races had the potential to go to Republicans or Democrats, proving that Arizona is just right of center.
One Arizona race that moved against that tide was for the U.S. Senate. Late Monday night, Democrat Ruben Gallego clinched a win over Republican Kari Lake.
This week on The Gaggle, a politics podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl discuss how Gallego prevailed over the red wall.
Listen to the episode
The best way to listen is to subscribe to The Gaggle on your favorite podcast app, but you also can stream the full episode below.
Note: The Gaggle is intended to be heard. But we also offer an AI transcript of the episode script. There may be slight deviations from the podcast audio.
Follow The Gaggle and all azcentral podcasts on X, formerly Twitter and on Instagram.
Listen to The Gaggle : Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher
Have a question or comment about Arizona politics?
You can share your thoughts with us at 602-444-0804 or via email here.
Reach the producer Amanda Luberto at aluberto@gannett.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter @amandaluberto.
Catch up on previous Gaggle episodes here:
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Ruben Gallego and Republicans proved Arizona’s purple
