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Arizona House of Representatives elections, 2018

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2018 Arizona
House elections
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GeneralNovember 6, 2018
PrimaryAugust 28, 2018
Past election results
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Republicans maintained their majority despite losing seats in the 2018 elections for the Arizona House of Representatives, winning 31 seats to Democrats' 29. All 60 House seats were up for election. At the time of the election, Republicans held 35 seats to Democrats' 25.

The Republican Party maintained its trifecta in Arizona in 2018 by holding its majorities in the state Senate and House and by retaining the governorship.

The Arizona House of Representatives was one of 87 state legislative chambers with elections in 2018. There are 99 chambers throughout the country.

Arizona state representatives serve two-year terms, with all seats up for election every two years. There are 30 multi-member state House districts that elect two members each.

Democratic Party For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
Republican Party For more information about the Republican primary, click here.

Post-election analysis

See also: State legislative elections, 2018

The Republican Party maintained control of both chambers of the Arizona State Legislature in the 2018 election. The Arizona State Senate was identified as a battleground chamber. All 30 seats were up for election. The Republican majority was maintained at 17-13. No incumbents were defeated in the general election.

The Arizona House of Representatives held elections for all 60 seats. The Republican majority in the House of Representatives was reduced from 35-25 to 31-29. One Democratic incumbent and two Republican incumbents were defeated in the primary. Three Republican incumbents were defeated in the general election.

National background

On November 6, 2018, 87 of the nation's 99 state legislative chambers held regularly scheduled elections for 6,073 of 7,383 total seats, meaning that nearly 82 percent of all state legislative seats were up for election.

  • Entering the 2018 election, Democrats held 42.6 percent, Republicans held 56.8 percent, and independents and other parties held 0.6 percent of the seats up for regular election.
  • Following the 2018 election, Democrats held 47.3 percent, Republicans held 52.3 percent, and independents and other parties held 0.4 percent of the seats up for regular election.
  • A total of 469 incumbents were defeated over the course of the election cycle, with roughly one-third of them defeated in the primary.

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Candidates

See also: Statistics on state legislative candidates, 2018

General election candidates

Arizona House of Representatives General Election 2018

  • Incumbents are marked with an (i) after their name.
  • Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
Office Democratic Party Democratic Republican Party Republican Other
District 1  (2 seats)

Ed Gogek
Jan Manolis

Green check mark transparent.pngNoel Campbell (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Stringer (i)

District 2  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngRosanna Gabaldón (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngDaniel Hernandez Jr. (i)

Chris Ackerley
Anthony Sizer

District 3  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngAndres Cano
Green check mark transparent.pngAlma Hernandez

Beryl Baker (Green Party)

District 4  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngCharlene Fernandez (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngGeraldine Peten (i)

Sara Mae Williams (Green Party)

District 5  (2 seats)

Mary Robinson

Green check mark transparent.pngRegina Cobb (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngLeo Biasiucci  Candidate Connection

District 6  (2 seats)

Felicia French  Candidate Connection
Bobby Tyler

Green check mark transparent.pngBob Thorpe (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngWalter Blackman

District 7  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngArlando Teller
Green check mark transparent.pngMyron Tsosie

Doyel Shamley

District 8  (2 seats)

Carmen Casillas
Linda Gross  Candidate Connection

Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Cook (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngThomas Shope (i)

District 9  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngRandall Friese (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngPamela Powers Hannley (i)

Ana Henderson

District 10  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngKirsten Engel (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngDomingo DeGrazia

Todd Clodfelter (i)

Joshua Reilly (Green Party)

District 11  (2 seats)

Hollace Lyon
Marcela Quiroz

Green check mark transparent.pngMark Finchem (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngBret Roberts

District 12  (2 seats)

Joe Bisaccia
Lynsey Robinson

Green check mark transparent.pngTravis Grantham (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngWarren Petersen

District 13  (2 seats)

Thomas Tzitzura

Green check mark transparent.pngTim Dunn (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngJoanne Osborne

District 14  (2 seats)

Bob Karp  Candidate Connection
Shelley Renne-Leon

Green check mark transparent.pngBecky Nutt (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngGail Griffin

District 15  (2 seats)

Julie Gunnigle  Candidate Connection
Jennifer Samuels

Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Allen (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngNancy K. Barto

District 16  (2 seats)

Sharon Stinard

Green check mark transparent.pngKelly Townsend (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Fillmore

Richard Grayson (Green Party)

District 17  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngJennifer Pawlik

Green check mark transparent.pngJeff Weninger (i)
Nora Ellen

District 18  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngDenise Epstein (i)  Candidate Connection
Green check mark transparent.pngJennifer Jermaine

Jill Norgaard (i)
Greg Patterson

District 19  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngDiego Espinoza (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngLorenzo Sierra

District 20  (2 seats)

Hazel Chandler
Christopher Gilfillan  Candidate Connection

Green check mark transparent.pngAnthony Kern (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngShawnna Bolick

District 21  (2 seats)

Bradley Hughes  Candidate Connection
Gilbert Romero

Green check mark transparent.pngKevin Payne (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngTony Rivero (i)

District 22  (2 seats)

Valerie Harris
Teri Sarmiento  Candidate Connection

Green check mark transparent.pngBen Toma (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngFrank Carroll

District 23  (2 seats)

Eric Kurland  Candidate Connection

Green check mark transparent.pngJay Lawrence (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Kavanagh

District 24  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngJennifer Longdon
Green check mark transparent.pngAmish Shah

David Alger Sr.

District 25  (2 seats)

Johnny Martin

Green check mark transparent.pngRussell Bowers (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngMichelle Udall (i)

District 26  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngIsela Blanc (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngAthena Salman (i)

Raymond Speakman  Candidate Connection

District 27  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngReginald Bolding (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngDiego Rodriguez

District 28  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngKelli Butler (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngAaron Lieberman

Maria Syms (i)
Kathy Petsas

District 29  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngRichard Andrade (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngCesar Chavez (i)

District 30  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngRobert Meza
Green check mark transparent.pngRaquel Terán

Gary Spears


Write-in candidates

Primary candidates

Arizona House of Representatives Primary Election 2018

  • Incumbents are marked with an (i) after their name.
  • Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
Office Democratic Party Democratic Republican Party Republican Other
District 1  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngEd Gogek
Green check mark transparent.pngJan Manolis

Green check mark transparent.pngNoel Campbell (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Stringer (i)
Jodi Rooney

District 2  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngRosanna Gabaldón (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngDaniel Hernandez Jr. (i)

Green check mark transparent.pngChris Ackerley
Green check mark transparent.pngAnthony Sizer

District 3  (2 seats)

Olivia Cajero Bedford
Green check mark transparent.pngAndres Cano
Green check mark transparent.pngAlma Hernandez

Green Party

Green check mark transparent.pngBeryl Baker
District 4  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngCharlene Fernandez (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngGeraldine Peten (i)

Green Party

Green check mark transparent.pngSara Mae Williams
District 5  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngMary Robinson

Green check mark transparent.pngRegina Cobb (i)
Paul Mosley (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngLeo Biasiucci  Candidate Connection
Jennifer Jones-Esposito

District 6  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngFelicia French  Candidate Connection
Green check mark transparent.pngBobby Tyler

Green check mark transparent.pngBob Thorpe (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngWalter Blackman
Stuart McDaniel

District 7  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngArlando Teller
Green check mark transparent.pngMyron Tsosie

Green check mark transparent.pngDoyel Shamley

District 8  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngCarmen Casillas
Pablo Correa
Green check mark transparent.pngLinda Gross  Candidate Connection

Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Cook (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngThomas Shope (i)

District 9  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngRandall Friese (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngPamela Powers Hannley (i)
JP Martin

Green check mark transparent.pngAna Henderson

District 10  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngKirsten Engel (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngDomingo DeGrazia
Nikki Lee
Catherine Ripley

Green check mark transparent.pngTodd Clodfelter (i)

Green Party

Green check mark transparent.pngJoshua Reilly
District 11  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngHollace Lyon
Barry McCain
Green check mark transparent.pngMarcela Quiroz

Green check mark transparent.pngMark Finchem (i)
Howell Jones
Green check mark transparent.pngBret Roberts

District 12  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngJoe Bisaccia
Green check mark transparent.pngLynsey Robinson
D.J. Rothans

Green check mark transparent.pngTravis Grantham (i)
Nick Myers
Green check mark transparent.pngWarren Petersen
Blake Sacha

District 13  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngThomas Tzitzura

Green check mark transparent.pngTim Dunn (i)
Darin Mitchell (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngJoanne Osborne
Trey Terry

District 14  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngBob Karp  Candidate Connection
Green check mark transparent.pngShelley Renne-Leon

Green check mark transparent.pngBecky Nutt (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngGail Griffin

District 15  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngJulie Gunnigle  Candidate Connection
Tonya MacBeth
Green check mark transparent.pngJennifer Samuels

Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Allen (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngNancy K. Barto

District 16  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngSharon Stinard

Green check mark transparent.pngKelly Townsend (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Fillmore
Lisa Godzich
Stephen Kridler
Tara Phelps  Candidate Connection

Did not make the ballot:
Bonnie Hickman 

District 17  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngJennifer Pawlik

Green check mark transparent.pngJeff Weninger (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngNora Ellen
Julie Willoughby

District 18  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngDenise Epstein (i)  Candidate Connection
Green check mark transparent.pngJennifer Jermaine
Ladawn Stuben

Green check mark transparent.pngJill Norgaard (i)
Don Hawker
Green check mark transparent.pngGreg Patterson
Farhana Shifa

District 19  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngDiego Espinoza (i)
Devin Del Palacio
Green check mark transparent.pngLorenzo Sierra

District 20  (2 seats)

Dan Anderson
Green check mark transparent.pngHazel Chandler
Patrick Church
Green check mark transparent.pngChristopher Gilfillan  Candidate Connection

Green check mark transparent.pngAnthony Kern (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngShawnna Bolick

District 21  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngBradley Hughes  Candidate Connection
Green check mark transparent.pngGilbert Romero

Green check mark transparent.pngKevin Payne (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngTony Rivero (i)

District 22  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngValerie Harris
Green check mark transparent.pngTeri Sarmiento  Candidate Connection

Green check mark transparent.pngBen Toma (i)
Matt Bullock
Green check mark transparent.pngFrank Carroll
John Heep

District 23  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngEric Kurland  Candidate Connection

Green check mark transparent.pngJay Lawrence (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Kavanagh

District 24  (2 seats)

Ken Clark (i)
Fred Dominguez
Marcus Ferrell
John Glenn
Denise Link  Candidate Connection
Green check mark transparent.pngJennifer Longdon
Green check mark transparent.pngAmish Shah

Green check mark transparent.pngDavid Alger Sr.

District 25  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngJohnny Martin

Green check mark transparent.pngRussell Bowers (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngMichelle Udall (i)
Marlene Hinton  Candidate Connection

District 26  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngIsela Blanc (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngAthena Salman (i)

Green check mark transparent.pngRaymond Speakman  Candidate Connection

District 27  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngReginald Bolding (i)
Talonya Adams
Roberto Garcia
Green check mark transparent.pngDiego Rodriguez

District 28  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngKelli Butler (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngAaron Lieberman

Green check mark transparent.pngMaria Syms (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngKathy Petsas

District 29  (2 seats)

Green check mark transparent.pngRichard Andrade (i)
Green check mark transparent.pngCesar Chavez (i)

District 30  (2 seats)

Bill Brotherton
Alejandro Larios
Green check mark transparent.pngRobert Meza
Green check mark transparent.pngRaquel Terán

Green check mark transparent.pngGary Spears

Margins of victory

See also: Margin of victory analysis for the 2018 state legislative elections

A margin of victory (MOV) analysis for the 2018 Arizona House of Representatives races is presented in this section. MOV represents the percentage of total votes that separated the winner and the second-place finisher. For example, if the winner of a race received 47 percent of the vote and the second-place finisher received 45 percent of the vote, the MOV is 2 percent.

The table below presents the following figures for each party:

  • Elections won
  • Elections won by less than 10 percentage points
  • Elections won without opposition
  • Average margin of victory[1]
Arizona House of Representatives: 2018 Margin of Victory Analysis
Party Elections won[2] Elections won by less than 10% Unopposed elections Average margin of victory[1]
Democratic Party Democratic
15
7
3
11.1%
Republican Party Republican
16
9
0
8.7%
Grey.png Other
0
0
0
N/A
Total[3]
30
15
3
10.1%



The margin of victory in each race is presented below. The list is sorted from the closest MOV to the largest (including unopposed races). Red dots represent Republicans, blue dots represent Democrats, and green dots represent Green Party candidates. Candidates are ordered from left to right based on their share of the vote. The margin of victory is the margin between the bottom-place winner and the top-place losing candidate.

Arizona House of Representatives: 2018 Margin of Victory by District
District Winning Party Losing Party Margin of Victory
Arizona House of Representatives District 6
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
0.3%
Arizona House of Representatives District 28
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party Republican Party
1.4%
Arizona House of Representatives District 20
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
1.4%
Arizona House of Representatives District 17
Democratic Party Republican Party
Republican Party
2.3%
Arizona House of Representatives District 10
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party Green Party
2.9%
Arizona House of Representatives District 23
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party
3.0%
Arizona House of Representatives District 18
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party Republican Party
3.2%
Arizona House of Representatives District 7
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party
4.9%
Arizona House of Representatives District 21
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
5.2%
Arizona House of Representatives District 15
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
6.1%
Arizona House of Representatives District 11
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
6.1%
Arizona House of Representatives District 8
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
7.2%
Arizona House of Representatives District 2
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party Republican Party
8.2%
Arizona House of Representatives District 9
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party
9.2%
Arizona House of Representatives District 12
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
9.8%
Arizona House of Representatives District 16
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Green Party
10.0%
Arizona House of Representatives District 25
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party
11.9%
Arizona House of Representatives District 22
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
12.5%
Arizona House of Representatives District 13
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party
12.8%
Arizona House of Representatives District 30
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party
14.1%
Arizona House of Representatives District 14
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
14.3%
Arizona House of Representatives District 26
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party
15.3%
Arizona House of Representatives District 1
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party Democratic Party
17.2%
Arizona House of Representatives District 5
Republican Party Republican Party
Democratic Party
19.7%
Arizona House of Representatives District 4
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Green Party
20.4%
Arizona House of Representatives District 24
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Republican Party
20.8%
Arizona House of Representatives District 3
Democratic Party Democratic Party
Green Party
30.7%
Arizona House of Representatives District 29
Democratic Party Democratic Party
None
Unopposed
Arizona House of Representatives District 19
Democratic Party Democratic Party
None
Unopposed
Arizona House of Representatives District 27
Democratic Party Democratic Party
None
Unopposed


Seats flipped

See also: State legislative seats that changed party control, 2018

The below map displays each seat in the Arizona House of Representatives which changed partisan hands as a result of the 2018 elections, shaded according to the partisan affiliation of the winner in 2018. Hover over a shaded district for more information.

State legislative seats flipped in 2018, Arizona House of Representatives
District Incumbent 2018 winner Direction of flip
Arizona House of Representatives District 10 Republican Party Todd Clodfelter Democratic Party Domingo Degrazia R to D
Arizona House of Representatives District 17 Republican Party J.D. Mesnard Democratic Party Jennifer Pawlik R to D
Arizona House of Representatives District 18 Republican Party Jill Norgaard Democratic Party Jennifer Jermaine R to D
Arizona House of Representatives District 28 Republican Party Maria Syms Democratic Party Aaron Lieberman R to D

Incumbents retiring

Nineteen incumbents did not run for re-election in 2018.[4] Those incumbents were:

Name Party Current Office
Sally Ann Gonzales Electiondot.png Democratic House District 3
Macario Saldate Electiondot.png Democratic House District 3
Brenda Barton Ends.png Republican House District 6
Wenona Benally Electiondot.png Democratic House District 7
Eric Descheenie Electiondot.png Democratic House District 7
Vince Leach Ends.png Republican House District 11
Eddie Farnsworth Ends.png Republican House District 12
Drew John Ends.png Republican House District 14
Heather Carter Ends.png Republican House District 15
Doug Coleman Ends.png Republican House District 16
J.D. Mesnard Ends.png Republican House District 17
Mark Cardenas Electiondot.png Democratic House District 19
Paul Boyer Ends.png Republican House District 20
David Livingston Ends.png Republican House District 22
Michelle Ugenti-Rita Ends.png Republican House District 23
Lela Alston Electiondot.png Democratic House District 24
Rebecca Rios Electiondot.png Democratic House District 27
Ray Martinez Electiondot.png Democratic House District 30
Tony Navarrete Electiondot.png Democratic House District 30

Process to become a candidate

See also: Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Arizona

DocumentIcon.jpg See statutes: Title 16, Chapter 3 of the Arizona Revised Statutes

Candidates in Arizona can access the ballot as political party candidates, independent candidates, or write-in candidates. Candidates must file a statement of interest, nomination paper, financial disclosure statement, and nomination petitions.[5] Candidates file in-person or online, though the Candidate Portal, depending on the document in question.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

Political party candidates

Political party candidates are nominated in primary elections. If no candidate is nominated at the primary election for a specific office, no candidate for that office can appear on the general election ballot for that political party.[6][7]

A political party candidate must file his or her nomination documents during the candidate filing period, which begins 120 days before the primary and ends 90 days before the primary. At the time of filing, a candidate must be a qualified voter residing in the geographic area represented by the office being sought. The following documents must be filed in order to gain ballot access:Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

  • a financial disclosure statement
  • an affidavit affirming that the candidate will be eligible to hold office if elected
  • a nomination paper including the following information:
    • candidate’s residence address
    • name of the party with which the candidate is affiliated
    • office the candidate seeks, with district or precinct, if applicable
    • the candidate’s name as the candidate wishes it to appear on the ballot
    • date of the primary and corresponding general election
  • a nomination petition

Nomination petitions must be signed by qualified electors who are eligible to vote for the office the candidate is seeking. A qualified signer may be a "registered member of the party from which the candidate is seeking nomination," a "registered member of a political party that is not entitled to continued representation on the ballot," or an independent. To calculate the number of petition signatures needed, the voter registration totals as of the year of the election must be used. Signature requirements vary according to the office being sought. See the table below for further details.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

Formulas for determining signature requirements for political party candidates
Office sought Minimum signatures required Maximum signatures allowed
United States Senator or state executive office At least one-fourth of 1 percent of the total number of qualified signers** No more than 10 percent of the total number of qualified signers
United States Representative At least one-half of 1 percent of the total number of qualified signers in the district the candidate seeks to represent No more than 10 percent of the total number of qualified signers in the district the candidate seeks to represent
State legislative office At least one-half of 1 percent of the total number of qualified signers in the district the candidate seeks to represent No more than 3 percent of the total number of qualified signers in the district the candidate seeks to represent

Newly qualified political party candidates

A candidate of a newly qualified political party must file the same documents at the same time as other political party candidates. Petition signature requirements are different for newly qualified political party candidates. A candidate of a new political party must file signatures equal to at least one-tenth of 1 percent of the total votes cast for the winning presidential or gubernatorial candidate at the last general election in the district the candidate seeks to represent.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

Independent candidates

A candidate may not run as an independent if he or she is representing a party that failed to qualify for the primary election. Additionally, a candidate cannot run as an independent if he or she tried and failed to qualify as a political party candidate in the primary.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

An independent candidate must be nominated by petition to run in the general election. The nomination petition must be filed with the financial disclosure statement during the candidate filing period, which begins 120 days before the primary election and ends 90 days before the primary election.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

An independent candidate's nomination petition must be signed by registered voters eligible to vote for the office the candidate is seeking. The number of signatures required on the petition is equal to at least 3 percent of all registered voters who are not affiliated with a recognized political party in the district the candidate seeks to represent. Signature requirement figures should be calculated using voter registration data from the year of the election. Though the number of signatures required to gain ballot access as an independent is related to the number of registered voters who are not affiliated with recognized political parties, the affiliation of those signing the petitions does not matter as long as they have not already signed a political party candidate's petition.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

Write-in candidates

A candidate may not file as a write-in if any of the following are true:Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

  • The candidate ran in the primary election and failed to get elected.
  • The candidate did not file enough signatures to be allowed ballot access when previously filing for primary ballot access.
  • The candidate filed nomination petitions to run in the general election but did not submit enough valid signatures to gain ballot access.

Write-in votes will not be counted unless the write-in candidate files a nomination paper and financial disclosure form no later than 5 p.m. on the 40th day before the election in which the candidate intends to run. The nomination paper must include the following information:Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

  • the candidate's name and signature
  • the candidate's residence address or description of place of residence and post office address
  • the candidate's age
  • the length of time the candidate has been a resident of the state
  • the candidate's date of birth

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

Article 4, Part 2, Section 2 of the Arizona Constitution states: "No person shall be a member of the Legislature unless he shall be a citizen of the United States at the time of his election, nor unless he shall be at least twenty-five years of age, and shall have been a resident of Arizona at least three years and of the county from which he is elected at least one year before his election."

Salaries and per diem

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
State legislative salaries, 2024[8]
SalaryPer diem
$24,000/yearFor legislators residing within Maricopa County: $35/day. For legislators residing outside of Maricopa County: $251.66.

When sworn in

See also: When state legislators assume office after a general election

Arizona legislators assume office on the first day of the session after they are elected. Each regular session begins on the second Monday in January.[9]

Arizona political history

See also: Partisan composition of state houses and State government trifectas

Party control

2018

In the 2018 elections, the Republican majority in the Arizona House of Representatives was reduced from 35-25 to 31-29.

Arizona House of Representatives
Party As of November 6, 2018 After November 7, 2018
     Democratic Party 25 29
     Republican Party 35 31
Total 60 60

2016

In the 2016 elections, the Republican majority in the Arizona House of Representatives shrank from 36-24 to 35-25.

Arizona House of Representatives
Party As of November 7, 2016 After November 8, 2016
     Democratic Party 24 25
     Republican Party 36 35
Total 60 60

Trifectas

A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government. Republicans in Arizona gained a state government trifecta following the 2008 elections. From 1992 to 2017, Republicans held trifecta status for 17 years, from 1993 to 2001 and from 2009 to 2017.

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

Impact of term limits

See also: Impact of term limits on state representative elections in 2018 and Impact of term limits on state legislative elections in 2018

The Arizona House of Representatives has been a term-limited state house since Arizona passed Proposition 107 in 1992. Arizona representatives serve two-year terms with a four-term/eight-year term limit. Arizona's term limits apply to parts of terms and not just full terms.

All 60 seats in the Arizona House of Representatives were up for election in 2018. In the 2018 elections, eight representatives were ineligible to run because of term limits. The following state representatives were term limited in 2018:

Democratic: (3)

Republicans (5):

Of the 87 state legislative chambers that held elections in 2018, 24 of them—12 senate chambers and 12 house chambers—included incumbents who were unable to run for re-election due to term limits.[10] In the 24 chambers affected by term limits in 2018, 1,463 seats were up for election.[11] The Nevada Senate, Arkansas House, and Arkansas Senate are impacted by term limits, but no incumbents were term-limited in 2018. There are 99 chambers throughout the country.

A total of 271 state legislators—96 state senators and 175 state representatives—were ineligible to run in the 2018 elections because of term limits. This represented 4 percent of the 6,066 total seats up for election in November 2018.[12][13] Republicans had twice as many state legislators term-limited in 2018 as Democrats. A total of 86 Democrats were term-limited, while 177 Republicans were term-limited.

Wave election analysis

See also: Wave elections (1918-2016)

The term wave election is frequently used to describe an election cycle in which one party makes significant electoral gains. How many seats would Republicans have had to lose for the 2018 midterm election to be considered a wave election?

Ballotpedia examined the results of the 50 election cycles that occurred between 1918 and 2016—spanning from President Woodrow Wilson's (D) second midterm in 1918 to Donald Trump's (R) first presidential election in 2016. We define wave elections as the 20 percent of elections in that period resulting in the greatest seat swings against the president's party.

Applying this definition to state legislative elections, we found that Republicans needed to lose 494 seats for 2018 to qualify as a wave election.

The chart below shows the number of seats the president's party lost in the 10 state legislative waves from 1918 to 2016. Click here to read the full report.

State legislative wave elections
Year President Party Election type State legislative seats change Elections analyzed[14]
1932 Hoover R Presidential -1,022 7,365
1922 Harding R First midterm -907 6,907
1966 Johnson D First midterm[15] -782 7,561
1938 Roosevelt D Second midterm -769 7,179
1958 Eisenhower R Second midterm -702 7,627
2010 Obama D First midterm -702 7,306
1974 Ford R Second midterm[16] -695 7,481
1920 Wilson D Presidential -654 6,835
1930 Hoover R Presidential -640 7,361
1954 Eisenhower R First midterm -494 7,513

Competitiveness

Every year, Ballotpedia uses official candidate lists from each state to examine the competitiveness of every state legislative race in the country. Nationally, there has been a steady decline in electoral competitiveness since 2010. Most notable is that the number of districts with general election competition has dropped by more than 10 percent.

Results from 2016

Click here to read the full study »


Historical context

See also: Competitiveness in State Legislative Elections: 1972-2014

Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.

F5 Pop. % with uncontested state legislative races.png

Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.

Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.

Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.

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.[17][18]

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.


See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. 1.0 1.1 Excludes unopposed elections
  2. Defined as the number of districts where at least one of this party's candidates won.
  3. These numbers are lower than the sum of the figures found in the above rows due to the presence of multimember districts.
  4. Ballotpedia defines an incumbent as retiring if the incumbent did not file for office or filed for office but withdrew, was disqualified, or otherwise left a race in a manner other than losing the primary, primary runoff, or convention. If an incumbent runs as a write-in candidate, Ballotpedia does not consider them to be retiring. If an incumbent runs in the same chamber for a different seat, Ballotpedia does not consider them to be retiring.
  5. Arizona Secretary of State, "Running for Statewide Office," accessed July 23, 2025
  6. Arizona Revised Statutes, "Title 16, Chapter 3, Section 301," accessed July 23, 2025
  7. Arizona Revised Statutes, "Title 16, Chapter 3, Section 302," accessed July 23, 2025
  8. National Conference of State Legislatures, "2024 Legislator Compensation," August 21, 2024
  9. Arizona Revised Statutes, "41-1101, Section B," accessed November 22, 2016
  10. The Nevada Senate, Arkansas House, and Arkansas Senate were up for election in 2018 and have term limits, but no incumbents were term-limited in 2018.
  11. The Nevada Senate, Arkansas House, and Arkansas Senate are impacted by term limits, but no incumbents were term-limited in 2018. In the three chambers, a total of 129 seats were up for election in 2018. No legislators were unable to run in 2018 in those three chamber because of term limits.
  12. Ballotpedia confirmed through phone calls that at least seven California legislators were term-limited in 2018. The number of California legislators term-limited and the overall number of term-limited state legislators had a chance to change if Ballotpedia could confirm that more members were term-limited in 2018.
  13. Some of the 271 term-limited state legislators in 2018 may resign before their term ends. These legislators were still counted in the total number of term-limited legislators in 2018.
  14. The number of state legislative seats available for analysis varied, with as many as 7,795 and as few as 6,835.
  15. Lyndon Johnson's (D) first term began in November 1963 after the death of President John F. Kennedy (D), who was first elected in 1960. Before Johnson had his first midterm in 1966, he was re-elected president in 1964.
  16. Gerald Ford's (R) first term began in August 1974 following the resignation of President Richard Nixon (R), who was first elected in 1968 and was re-elected in 1972. Because Ford only served for two full months before facing the electorate, this election is classified as Nixon's second midterm.
  17. Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
  18. Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017


Current members of the Arizona House of Representatives
Leadership
Speaker of the House:Steve Montenegro
Majority Leader:Michael Carbone
Minority Leader:Oscar De Los Santos
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
District 10
District 11
District 13
District 14
District 15
District 16
District 17
District 18
District 19
Lupe Diaz (R)
District 20
District 22
District 23
District 24
District 25
District 26
District 27
Lisa Fink (R)
District 28
District 29
District 30
Republican Party (33)
Democratic Party (27)