Arizona State Senate District 17
| Arizona Senate District 17 | ||
 | ||
| Current incumbent | J.D. Mesnard  | |
Arizona’s seventeenth state senate district is represented by Republican Senator J.D. Mesnard.
Arizona state senators represent an average of 213,067 residents.[1] After the 2000 Census, each member represented 171,021 residents.[2]
About the office
Members of the Arizona State Senate serve two-year terms with term limits, limiting senators to four terms (a total of eight years).[3] 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.[4]
Qualifications
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."[5]
Arizona Statutes 16-311 and 16-312 state that all candidates seeking nomination via primary or write-in or must be qualified electors.[6][7]
Salaries
- See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
| State legislative salaries, 2025[8] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $24,000/year | For legislators residing within Maricopa County: $35/day. For legislators residing outside of Maricopa County: $269.33. |
Term limits
- See also: State legislatures with term limits
The Arizona legislature is one of 16 state legislatures with term limits. Voters enacted the Arizona Term Limits Act in 1992. That initiative said that Arizona senators are subject to term limits of no more than four two-year terms, or a total of eight years.
The first year that the term limits enacted in 1992 impacted the ability of incumbents to run for office was 2000.[9]
Vacancies
If there is a vacancy in the Arizona State Legislature, the board of county supervisors must select a replacement. The secretary of state is required to contact the state party chairperson to give notice of the vacancy. The state chairperson must give notice of a meeting to fill the seat within three business days of receiving notice.[10] The political party committee is involved in the appointment process only if the legislative district has thirty or more elected precinct committeemen.[10]
If the legislative district has 30 or more elected precinct committeemen:
- The precinct committeemen must nominate three qualified electors as replacements. If the Legislature is in session, this must occur within five days. If the Legislature is out of session, the committeemen have 21 days to nominate potential replacements. Each elector must receive a majority of the committeemen's vote to earn a nomination. The chair then forwards the three nominees to the board of supervisors. The board of supervisors appoints a nominee from the three names. If the committeemen do not submit a list of names within the allotted timeframe, the board of supervisors proceeds with the vacancy as if the district had fewer than 30 elected precinct committeemen.[10]
If the legislative district has fewer than 30 elected precinct committeemen:
- The board of supervisors appoints a panel of citizen supervisors within seven business days of a vacancy occurring. The citizen panel must submit the name of three qualified electors of the same political party as the previous incumbent to the board of supervisors. If the Legislature is in session, this must occur within five days. If the Legislature is out of session, the committeemen have 21 days to nominate potential replacements. The board of supervisors must select a replacement by a majority vote.[11]
- The person selected to fill the seat serves the remainder of the unfilled term.[11]
See sources: Arizona Rev. Stat. Ann. §41-1202
Elections
2018
General election
General election for Arizona State Senate District 17
Javan Daniel Mesnard defeated Steve Weichert in the general election for Arizona State Senate District 17 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Javan Daniel Mesnard (R) | 50.9 | 48,008 |
 | Steve Weichert (D) | 49.1 | 46,264 | |
| Total votes: 94,272 (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. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Arizona State Senate District 17
Steve Weichert advanced from the Democratic primary for Arizona State Senate District 17 on August 28, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Steve Weichert | 100.0 | 15,680 |
| Total votes: 15,680 (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 Arizona State Senate District 17
Javan Daniel Mesnard advanced from the Republican primary for Arizona State Senate District 17 on August 28, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Javan Daniel Mesnard | 100.0 | 22,206 |
| Total votes: 22,206 (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. | ||||
2016
- See also: Arizona State Senate elections, 2016
Elections for the Arizona State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 30, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 1, 2016.
Incumbent Steven B. Yarbrough defeated Steven Weichert in the Arizona State Senate District 17 general election.[12][13]
| Arizona State Senate, District 17 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Steven B. Yarbrough Incumbent |
56.65% | 54,454 | |
| Democratic | Steven Weichert | 43.35% | 41,676 | |
| Total Votes | 96,130 | |||
| Source: Arizona Secretary of State | ||||
Steven Weichert ran unopposed in the Arizona State Senate District 17 Democratic Primary.[14]
| Arizona State Senate, District 17 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Steven Weichert (unopposed) | |
Incumbent Steven B. Yarbrough ran unopposed in the Arizona State Senate District 17 Republican Primary.[15]
| Arizona State Senate, District 17 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | Steven B. Yarbrough Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2014
- See also: Arizona State Senate elections, 2014
Elections for the Arizona State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on August 26, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was May 28, 2014. Kristie O'Brien was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Steve Yarbrough was unopposed in the Republican primary. Yarbrough defeated O'Brien in the general election.[16][17][18][19]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steve Yarbrough Incumbent |
60.1% | 32,598 | |
| Democratic | Kristie O'Brien | 39.9% | 21,619 | |
| Total Votes | 54,217 | |||
2012
- See also: Arizona State Senate elections, 2012
Elections for the office of Arizona State Senate consisted of a primary election on August 28, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. The signature-filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was May 30, 2012. Incumbent Steven B. Yarbrough defeated Bill Gates (D) in the general election. Both candidates ran unopposed in the August 28 primary elections.[20][21]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steve Yarbrough Incumbent |
57.2% | 48,581 | |
| Democratic | Bill Gates | 42.8% | 36,349 | |
| Total Votes | 84,930 | |||
Campaign contributions
From 2002 to 2016, candidates for Arizona State Senate District 17 raised a total of $879,103. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $41,862 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.
| Campaign contributions, Arizona State Senate District 17 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Amount | Candidates | Average | |
| 2016 | $181,036 | 2 | $90,518 | |
| 2014 | $136,045 | 2 | $68,023 | |
| 2012 | $80,002 | 2 | $40,001 | |
| 2010 | $128,674 | 4 | $32,169 | |
| 2008 | $48,256 | 2 | $24,128 | |
| 2006 | $99,743 | 2 | $49,872 | |
| 2004 | $43,345 | 2 | $21,673 | |
| 2002 | $132,301 | 3 | $44,100 | |
| 2000 | $29,701 | 2 | $14,851 | |
| Total | $879,103 | 21 | $41,862 | |
See also
- Arizona State Legislature
- Arizona State Senate
- Arizona House of Representatives
- Arizona state legislative districts
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ United States Census 2010, "Population in 2010 of the American states," November 22, 2013
- ↑ United States Census 2010, "Population in 2000 of the American states," November 27, 2013
- ↑ Arizona State Legislature, "Term limits," accessed December 16, 2013
- ↑ Arizona Revised Statutes, "41-1101, Section B," accessed November 22, 2016
- ↑ Arizona State Legislature, "2. Qualifications of members of legislature," accessed May 21, 2025
- ↑ Arizona Legislature, "16-311," accessed May 29, 2025
- ↑ Arizona Legislature, "16-312," accessed May 29, 2025
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2025 Legislator Compensation," December 2, 2025
- ↑ Arizona Attorney General, "Legislative Term Limits," accessed February 8, 2021
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Arizona Legislature, "Arizona Revised Statutes," accessed February 8, 2021 (Statute 41.1202 (A), Arizona Revised Statutes)
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Arizona Legislature, "Arizona Revised Statutes," accessed February 8, 2021 (Statute 41.1202 (B), Arizona Revised Statutes)
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "General election ," accessed September 9, 2016
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "2016 official general election results," accessed November 11, 2016
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "2016 Election Information - Primary Candidate List," accessed June 3, 2016
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "2016 Election Information - Primary Candidate List," accessed June 3, 2016
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "Official primary election results," accessed August 27, 2014
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "2014 Primary Election," May 28, 2014
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "Official general election candidate list," accessed September 11, 2014
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "Official general election results," accessed August 3, 2015
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "2010 Primary Candidate List," December 20, 2013
- ↑ Arizona Secretary of State, "Official 2012 Primary Results," December 23, 2013
