The Veridus BLOG

The race for Arizona Governor began in earnest this week as the Hobbs campaign launched a slate of broadcast TV ads it characterized as “the earliest ever for an Arizona gubernatorial race.” The 30-second biographical spots are airing in English and Spanish and highlight Governor Katie Hobbs’ working-class background, as well as her focus on affordability issues.

Four Arizonans have run for President and come up short, leading to the axiom: “Arizona is the only state in the union where mothers can't tell their sons they can grow up to be president."

Governor Katie Hobbs lifted her bill moratorium Thursday, clearing lawmakers to once again begin sending her bills to sign or veto. The announcement ends a legislative blockade that she began a month earlier, and is fueling optimism among Capitol-watchers that a budget deal is moving closer.

Nearly 3 out of 4 Arizona ballots were cast by mail during the 2024 General Election. Now, a local group is mounting an effort to protect mail-in voting by enshrining the practice in the Arizona Constitution.

As expected, Governor Katie Hobbs today vetoed a GOP-led budget package for fiscal 2027. The $17.9 billion spending plan passed the Arizona House and Senate via party-line votes, and Governor Hobbs had already signaled her opposition. With a statement accompanying the veto, she called the legislative proposal “unbalanced and reckless,” and likened it to “Washington-style budgeting.”

Today, the Arizona State Senate approved the Republican majority’s $17.9 billion budget package for fiscal 2027. It will be transmitted to Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs, who has raised objections to the spending plan and is widely expected to veto it. The same proposal passed out of the House last week, clearing both chambers by a GOP-only, party-line vote.

This week, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a six-decade-old section of the Voting Rights Act - effectively outlawing the practice of taking into consideration the racial makeup of voters when drawing legislative and congressional district lines.