Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Arizona's 3rd Congressional District election, 2018
General election
General election for U.S. House Arizona District 3
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Raúl Grijalva (D)  | 63.9 | 114,650 |
| Nicolas Pierson (R) | 36.1 | 64,868 | ||
| Total votes: 179,518 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jaime Vasquez (Independent)
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 9
- Early voting: Oct. 10 - Nov. 2
- Absentee voting deadline: Postmark Nov. 6
- Online registration: Yes
- Same-day registration: No
- Voter ID: Non-photo ID
- Poll times: 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
2020 →
← 2016
|
| Arizona's 3rd Congressional District |
|---|
 |
| Democratic primary Republican primary General election |
| Election details |
| Filing deadline: May 30, 2018 |
| Primary: August 28, 2018 General: November 6, 2018 Pre-election incumbent: Raul Grijalva (Democrat) |
| How to vote |
| Poll times: 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voting in Arizona |
| Race ratings |
Cook Political Report: Solid Democratic Inside Elections: Solid Democratic Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Democratic |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018 |
| See also |
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 8th (special) Arizona elections, 2018 U.S. Congress elections, 2018 U.S. Senate elections, 2018 U.S. House elections, 2018 |
All U.S. congressional districts, including the 3rd Congressional District of Arizona, held elections in 2018.
Heading into the election the incumbent was Raul Grijalva (D), who was first elected in 2002.
The 3rd District is located in the southern portion and southwestern corner of the state. All of Santa Cruz County and portions of Maricopa, Pima, Pinal, and Yuma counties are included in the district. [1]
Candidates and election results
General election
General election for U.S. House Arizona District 3
Incumbent Raúl Grijalva defeated Nicolas Pierson in the general election for U.S. House Arizona District 3 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Raúl Grijalva (D) | 63.9 | 114,650 |
| Nicolas Pierson (R) | 36.1 | 64,868 | ||
| Total votes: 179,518 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jaime Vasquez (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Arizona District 3
Incumbent Raúl Grijalva advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Arizona District 3 on August 28, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Raúl Grijalva | 100.0 | 45,186 |
| Total votes: 45,186 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Arizona District 3
Nicolas Pierson defeated Sergio Arellano and Edna San Miguel in the Republican primary for U.S. House Arizona District 3 on August 28, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Nicolas Pierson | 49.9 | 13,090 | |
 | Sergio Arellano | 28.2 | 7,400 | |
 | Edna San Miguel | 21.9 | 5,756 | |
| Total votes: 26,246 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
District analysis
- See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index
- See also: FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores
The 2017 Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was D+13, meaning that in the previous two presidential elections, this district's results were 13 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Arizona's 3rd Congressional District the 106th most Democratic nationally.[2]
FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 1.08. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 1.08 points toward that party.[3]
Campaign finance
The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raúl Grijalva | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Nicolas Pierson | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," . This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
|||||
District history
2016
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Democratic. Incumbent Raul Grijalva (D) defeated write-in candidates Harvey Martin (D) and Mike Ross (L) in the general election on November 8, 2016.[4][5][6]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Raul Grijalva Incumbent |
98.6% | 148,973 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 1.4% | 2,062 | |
| Total Votes | 151,035 | |||
| Source: Arizona Secretary of State | ||||
2014
The 3rd Congressional District of Arizona held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Rep. Raul Grijalva (D) defeated Gabriela Saucedo Mercer (R) in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Raul Grijalva Incumbent |
55.7% | 58,192 | |
| Republican | Gabriela Saucedo Mercer | 44.2% | 46,185 | |
| Write-in | F. Sanchez | 0% | 43 | |
| Write-in | Lee Thompson | 0% | 8 | |
| Total Votes | 104,428 | |||
| Source: Arizona Secretary of State | ||||
Pivot Counties
- See also: Pivot Counties by state
Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states. No counties in Arizona are Pivot Counties.
Donald Trump (R) defeated Hillary Clinton (D) in the 2016 presidential election. Trump won 48.7 percent of the vote, while Clinton won 45.1 percent. Arizona was one of 12 key battleground states in 2016. Of the 30 states won by Trump in 2016, Arizona had the fifth closest margin. From when it became a state in 1912 to 2016, Arizona voted Republican in 66.7 percent of presidential elections. It voted Republican in all presidential elections from 2000 to 2016.
Presidential results by legislative district
The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Arizona. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[7][8]
| In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 12 out of 30 state House districts in Arizona with an average margin of victory of 25 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 14 out of 30 state House districts in Arizona with an average margin of victory of 27.5 points. Clinton won two districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections. |
| In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 18 out of 30 state House districts in Arizona with an average margin of victory of 22.9 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 16 out of 30 state House districts in Arizona with an average margin of victory of 21.5 points. |
| 2016 presidential results by state House district | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Obama | Romney | 2012 Margin | Clinton | Trump | 2016 Margin | Party Control |
| 1 | 30.1% | 68.2% | R+38.2 | 28.6% | 66.9% | R+38.3 | R |
| 2 | 57.2% | 41.6% | D+15.7 | 59.4% | 36.1% | D+23.2 | D |
| 3 | 70.0% | 28.1% | D+41.9 | 70.2% | 24.4% | D+45.8 | D |
| 4 | 54.3% | 44.2% | D+10.2 | 56.8% | 38.2% | D+18.7 | D |
| 5 | 28.1% | 70.0% | R+41.9 | 22.2% | 73.5% | R+51.3 | R |
| 6 | 42.2% | 55.6% | R+13.4 | 41.7% | 52.1% | R+10.4 | R |
| 7 | 63.2% | 35.4% | D+27.8 | 59.8% | 34.1% | D+25.7 | D |
| 8 | 44.7% | 53.5% | R+8.8 | 40.2% | 54.6% | R+14.4 | R |
| 9 | 53.4% | 44.9% | D+8.4 | 56.8% | 37.9% | D+18.9 | D |
| 10 | 51.8% | 46.5% | D+5.4 | 52.9% | 41.6% | D+11.4 | D |
| 11 | 39.7% | 59.0% | R+19.3 | 40.6% | 54.5% | R+13.9 | R |
| 12 | 32.5% | 65.9% | R+33.4 | 34.8% | 59.3% | R+24.5 | R |
| 13 | 33.5% | 65.1% | R+31.6 | 34.1% | 61.1% | R+27 | R |
| 14 | 35.7% | 62.5% | R+26.8 | 33.6% | 59.9% | R+26.2 | R |
| 15 | 36.4% | 61.9% | R+25.4 | 39.1% | 55.7% | R+16.6 | R |
| 16 | 35.0% | 63.1% | R+28.1 | 32.9% | 61.3% | R+28.4 | R |
| 17 | 42.1% | 56.2% | R+14.2 | 45.1% | 49.2% | R+4.1 | R |
| 18 | 48.1% | 50.0% | R+1.9 | 51.9% | 41.5% | D+10.4 | R |
| 19 | 66.4% | 32.1% | D+34.3 | 67.4% | 27.2% | D+40.3 | D |
| 20 | 42.4% | 55.3% | R+12.9 | 42.7% | 50.7% | R+8 | R |
| 21 | 40.6% | 58.0% | R+17.4 | 39.8% | 55.0% | R+15.2 | R |
| 22 | 33.4% | 65.4% | R+31.9 | 33.7% | 62.1% | R+28.4 | R |
| 23 | 35.9% | 62.9% | R+26.9 | 41.2% | 54.6% | R+13.3 | R |
| 24 | 63.2% | 34.4% | D+28.8 | 65.9% | 27.7% | D+38.3 | D |
| 25 | 33.1% | 65.1% | R+31.9 | 35.1% | 58.7% | R+23.6 | R |
| 26 | 58.3% | 38.5% | D+19.8 | 59.4% | 31.9% | D+27.5 | D |
| 27 | 75.2% | 23.2% | D+52 | 74.1% | 20.6% | D+53.5 | D |
| 28 | 44.6% | 53.6% | R+9 | 49.9% | 44.6% | D+5.3 | R |
| 29 | 64.7% | 33.6% | D+31.1 | 65.0% | 29.3% | D+35.7 | D |
| 30 | 61.3% | 36.7% | D+24.7 | 62.2% | 31.7% | D+30.5 | D |
| Total | 44.6% | 53.7% | R+9.1 | 45.5% | 49.0% | R+3.6 | - |
| Source: Daily Kos | |||||||
State overview
Partisan control
This section details the partisan control of federal and state positions in Arizona heading into the 2018 elections.
Congressional delegation
- Following the 2016 elections, Republicans held both U.S. Senate seats in Arizona.
- Republicans held five of the nine U.S. House seats in Arizona.
State executives
- As of September 2018, Republicans held 7 of 11 state executive positions. The remaining four positions were officially nonpartisan.
- The governor of Arizona was Republican Doug Ducey. The state held elections for governor and lieutenant governor on November 6, 2018.
State legislature
- Republicans controlled both chambers of the Arizona State Legislature. They had a 35-25 majority in the state House and a 17-13 majority in the state Senate.
Trifecta status
- Arizona was a Republican trifecta, meaning that the Republican Party controlled the office of the governor, the state House, and the state Senate.
2018 elections
- See also: Arizona elections, 2018
Arizona held elections for the following positions in 2018:
- One U.S. Senate seats
- Nine U.S. House seats
- Governor
- Seven lower state executive positions
- 30 state Senate seats
- 60 state House seats
Demographics
| Demographic data for Arizona | ||
|---|---|---|
| Arizona | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 6,817,565 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 113,594 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 78.4% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 4.2% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 3% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 4.4% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 3.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 30.3% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 86% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 27.5% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $50,255 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 21.2% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Arizona. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
As of July 2016, Arizona's three largest cities were Phoenix (pop. est. 1,626,078), Tucson (pop. est. 535,677), and Mesa (pop. est. 496,401).[9][10]
State election history
This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Arizona from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Arizona Secretary of State.
Historical elections
Presidential elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Arizona every year from 2000 to 2016.
| Election results (President of the United States), Arizona 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2016 |  Donald Trump |
48.7% |  Hillary Clinton |
45.1% | 3.6% |
| 2012 | Mitt Romney |
53.7% | Barack Obama |
44.6% | 9.1% |
| 2008 | John McCain |
53.6% | Barack Obama |
45.1% | 7.5% |
| 2004 | George W. Bush |
54.9% | John Kerry |
44.4% | 10.5% |
| 2000 | George W. Bush |
51.0% | Al Gore |
44.5% | 5.5% |
U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Arizona from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.
| Election results (U.S. Senator), Arizona 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2016 | John McCain |
53.7% | Ann Kirkpatrick |
40.7% | 13.0% |
| 2012 | Jeff Flake |
49.2% | Richard Carmona |
46.2% | 3.0% |
| 2010 | John McCain |
58.9% | Rodney Glassman |
34.7% | 24.2% |
| 2006 | Jon Kyl |
53.3% | Jim Pederson |
43.5% | 9.8% |
| 2004 | John McCain |
76.7% | Stuart Starky |
20.6% | 56.1% |
| 2002 | Jon Kyl |
79.3% |  William Toel (I) |
7.8% | 7.8% |
Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Arizona.
| Election results (Governor), Arizona 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2014 | Doug Ducey |
53.4% | Fred DuVal |
41.6% | 11.8% |
| 2010 | Jan Brewer |
54.3% | Terry Goddard |
42.4% | 12.1% |
| 2006 | Janet Napolitano |
62.6% | Len Munsil |
35.4% | 27.2% |
| 2002 | Janet Napolitano |
46.2% | Matt Salmon |
45.2% | 1.0%' |
Congressional delegation, 2000-2016
This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Arizona in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.
| Congressional delegation, Arizona 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Republicans | Republicans (%) | Democrats | Democrats (%) | Balance of power |
| 2016 | 5 |
55.5% | 4 |
44.4% | R+1 |
| 2014 | 5 |
55.5% | 4 |
44.4% | R+1 |
| 2012 | 4 |
44.4% | 5 |
55.5% | D+1 |
| 2010 | 5 |
62.5% | 3 |
37.5% | R+2 |
| 2008 | 3 |
37.5% | 5 |
62.5% | D+2 |
| 2006 | 4 |
50% | 4 |
50% | Even |
| 2004 | 6 |
75% | 2 |
25% | R+4 |
| 2002 | 6 |
75% | 2 |
25% | R+4 |
| 2000 | 5 |
83.3% | 1 |
16.6% | R+4 |
Trifectas, 1992-2017
A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.
Arizona Party Control: 1992-2025
No Democratic trifectas • Twenty-two years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D |
| Senate | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | S | S | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Arizona, 2018
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2018
- Arizona's 3rd Congressional District election (August 28, 2018 Democratic primary)
- Arizona's 3rd Congressional District election (August 28, 2018 Republican primary)
Footnotes
- ↑ United States Census Bureau, "Counties by Congressional Districts," accessed June 8, 2016
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2017 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," April 7, 2017
- ↑ FiveThirtyEight, "Election Update: The Most (And Least) Elastic States And Districts," September 6, 2018
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Candidates," accessed June 2, 2016
- ↑ Politico, " Arizona House Primaries Results," August 30, 2016
- ↑ CNN, "Election Results," accessed November 8, 2016
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
- ↑ Arizona Demographics, "Arizona Cities by Population," accessed August 30, 2018
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "Quickfacts Arizona," accessed August 30, 2018
