Democrats will control the Arizona House and Senate when the Legislature opens its 2027 session, but Queen Creek's own legislative delegation will stay entirely Republican, according to unofficial returns.
The Associated Press called enough races on Friday to confirm that both chambers had flipped. With Gov. Katie Hobbs reelected, Democrats will hold the governorship and both chambers at once for the first time in Arizona since 1966. Republicans had run the House for six decades and controlled the Senate since early in the 1990s, the AP reported. Several races were still being counted.
Legislative District 15
In LD 15, which includes Queen Creek, Republican Sen. Jake Hoffman won reelection over Jayme Accalia with 57% of the vote, the Queen Creek Tribune reported from unofficial results. Republican Reps. Michael Way and Neal Carter were unopposed.
The Tribune, citing the Arizona Agenda newsletter, reported that in the minority Hoffman loses his chairmanship of the Senate committee that reviews the governor's agency director nominees.
Another Queen Creek Republican, outgoing Senate President Warren Petersen, lost his challenge to Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes by roughly 10 percentage points in unofficial returns, the Tribune reported.
What each side says
House Democrats chose Rep. Oscar De Los Santos of Laveen as speaker-elect, and Senate Democrats picked Sen. Priya Sundareshan of Tucson to lead their chamber, the Arizona Capitol Times reported. De Los Santos called the result a win for Arizona and said Democrats would focus on affordability, and Sundareshan said her caucus was united and ready to govern together, according to the Capitol Times.
House Republicans elected outgoing Speaker Steve Montenegro of Goodyear as minority leader. Montenegro said his caucus is united, will focus on the cost of living and will oppose new-majority policies that could raise taxes, the Capitol Times reported.
During her first term, Hobbs vetoed more than 540 bills sent to her by Republican lawmakers, the AP reported. She has said her priorities include water, affordability and misuse in Arizona's school voucher program.
