2026 Midterms State GuideArizona
Hold on to your hot sauce and Sonoran hot dog.
Polls are closed
Polls are closed in Arizona, and results aren’t finalized yet.
Ballots are still being counted, close races can take days to call, and no result is official until it’s certified.
A prayer for Arizona
Lord of the desert and the mountains, we lift up Arizona before You. As Arizonans prepare to choose their next governor and members of Congress, give them that same steadiness. In a race where the issues are real and the stakes are high, may voters seek wisdom from above, not just from the loudest voices on their screens.
Read the whole prayerUpdated
Hi! It’s me, Shadrach. Apparently, I’m your civic guide today. If you’ve been complaining about how things are going (and I’ve heard you... the walls are thin), this guide will help you feel informed and able to vote in this year’s midterms. Now, hold on to your hot sauce and Sonoran hot dog, and let’s get into it.
Arizona at a glance
Arizona votes on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, for governor, all 9 U.S. House seats and eight statewide ballot measures.
- Election Day
- Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026
- Voter registration
- Oct. 5 (11:59 p.m.): Voter registration deadline
- Early voting
- Oct. 7: Early voting begins; early ballots go out.
- Governor
- 6 candidates
- U.S. House
- 9 seats
- Statewide ballot measures
- 8
What happens next
The counting continues
Election-night numbers are unofficial. Mail, provisional, and military ballots are still being counted, so close races can take days to call.
- Nov. 8Last day to fix a signature problem on an early ballot.
Officials double-check the count
Local election officials review the ballots and the tallies (the canvass). A very close race can go to a recount.
Arizona certifies the results
Results become official once Arizona certifies them, usually a few weeks after Election Day.
Winners take office
The new Congress takes office in early January. Governors and other state officials take office on dates set by state law, most of them in January too.
Important dates
- July 21Primaries (moved from Aug. 4 by HB 2022) This date has passed.
- Oct. 5 (11:59 p.m.)Voter registration deadline This date has passed.
- Oct. 7Early voting begins; early ballots go out. This date has passed.
- Oct. 23Last day to request an early ballot by mail This date has passed.
- Oct. 30Last day to vote early in person (emergency early voting runs from Oct. 30, 7 p.m. to Nov. 2, 5 p.m.) This date has passed.
- Nov. 3Election Day, polls open 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.; early ballots must be received by 7 p.m. (not just postmarked). This date has passed.
- Nov. 8Last day to fix a signature problem on an early ballot This date has passed.
What’s at stake
Arizona has no U.S. Senate race this year (Sen. Mark Kelly (D) won his seat in 2022 and is next up in 2028), but it has a competitive race for governor. Gov. Katie Hobbs (D), who won narrowly in 2022, faces Rep. Andy Biggs (R), a former chairman of the House Freedom Caucus. Arizona voters say their top concern is the economy (34%), followed by immigration and threats to democracy, and housing affordability is a growing issue as home prices have climbed in Phoenix and Tucson. This is also Arizona's first election for lieutenant governor, a position created by Proposition 131 in 2022, so each governor nominee runs with a running mate for the first time.
Who’s on your ballot
Tap a race to see the candidates.
Arizona is choosing a governor
See whose priorities line up with yours
Here are the top priorities each candidate lists, in their own words. Pick the 3 that matter most to you. Names stay hidden until you see your results.
0 of 3 picked
Katie HobbsDemocratincumbent
Top priorities- Improving education to prepare the next generation of Arizona leaders
- Making housing more affordable and strengthening protections for consumers
- Expanding access to health care and protecting reproductive rights
Andy BiggsRepublicancurrent U.S. Representative, District 5
Top priorities- Making Arizona affordable by eliminating the state income tax and lowering home-building costs
- Making government accountable by reviewing every agency to root out waste, fraud and abuse
- Making Arizona safe by fighting drug trafficking and reviving a state Border Strike Force
- Top priorities
Risa LombardoGreen- Cutting the U.S. military budget dramatically and ending long-running overseas wars
- Moving off fossil fuels and onto renewable energy to address climate change
- Guaranteeing a living wage and a real safety net as wages fall and bills rise
- Top priorities
Teri HourihanArizona Independent Party- Expanding health care access with employer incentives, price transparency and stronger oversight of insurers
- Lowering costs through water security, better school funding and cutting government waste and fraud
- Promoting accountability by participating in public debates
- Gertrude GonzalezRepublican
Write-in
- Alice NovoaRepublican
Write-in
All U.S. House of Representatives seats are up for election every two years. Find your district here.
- Shadrach’s big picture
Arizona sends 9 representatives to Congress. Republicans currently hold 6 seats and Democrats hold 3. With two Republican incumbents leaving to run for governor, Arizona's House map is more competitive than usual in 2026.
- Open seats
Two: AZ-1’s Rep. David Schweikert (R) isn’t seeking reelection after running for governor (he lost in the primaries). AZ-5 is also open, with Andy Biggs running in The Grand Canyon State’s gubernatorial race.
- Competitive districts
AZ-6, currently red, is considered a competitive toss-up, and AZ-1, an open Republican-held seat, leans (but isn't solidly) Democratic. AZ-2 is ranked likely (but not solidly) Republican; AZ-5, AZ-8, and AZ-9 are ranked solidly Republican; and AZ-3, AZ-4, and AZ-7 are solidly Democratic.
Statewide ballot measures
8 to read before you go. Tap one to open it.
The amendment would keep the government from doing two things: 1) Imposing a type of tax that charges people for every mile they drive, and 2) Enacting laws that limit mileage or monitor the number of miles a person racks up.
Voting yessupports amending the constitution to ban taxes or fees charged for every mile a person drives, and laws that limit or monitor how many miles a person drivesVoting noopposes this amendment, leaving the door open for lawmakers to consider a per-mile tax or mileage limits in the futureThe amendment bans race-based preferential treatment and would prohibit the state from doing three things: 1) Forcing anyone to endorse special treatment (or discrimination) based on race or ethnicity; 2) Using public money to fund a DEI office or role in a public school/university (one whose job is to promote preferential treatment based on race or ethnicity); and 3) Requiring students or employees to take a class or training that promotes race-based DEI or "intersectionality" concepts.
Voting yessupports amending the constitution to ban race-based preferential treatment, including forcing anyone to endorse it, using public money for DEI offices or roles in public schools and universities, and requiring race-based DEI or "intersectionality" classes or trainingsVoting noopposes this amendment, adding none of these prohibitions to the constitutionThe amendment bundles several election policy changes into one amendment: 1) Only U.S. citizens are allowed to vote in elections (this is already law but would be locked into the Constitution); 2) Disallows foreign nationals from making donations to influence an Arizona election, and prohibits others from knowingly taking their money; 3) Requires every voter (even mail-in voters) to provide government-issued identification to cast a ballot; and 4) Grants voters the right to have their vote counted at their voting location, instead of a central counting location.
Voting yessupports adding citizen-only voting to the constitution, banning foreign donations to influence Arizona elections, requiring every voter (even mail-in voters) to show government-issued ID, and giving voters the right to have their vote counted at their voting locationVoting noopposes this amendment, keeping citizen-only voting in state law rather than the constitution and adding none of the other changesThe amendment impacts your shopping cart in two ways: 1) Keeps a 2% forever ceiling on grocery taxes. If a city already charges more than 2% (lookin’ at you, Snowflake), it gets frozen. No coming down but also no going up; 2) Gives voters the final word on any increase in the future. If a city wants to raise grocery tax (up to the 2% cap), they gotta ask the people.
Voting yessupports capping grocery taxes at 2% for good, freezing any city rate that is already higher, and requiring a public vote before any city raises its grocery taxVoting noopposes this amendment, adding no constitutional cap on grocery taxes and no requirement that voters approve an increaseThis measure would declare drug cartels to be terrorist organizations and require the Arizona Department of Homeland Security to do "everything within its authority to address the threat posed by drug cartels."
Voting yessupports declaring drug cartels terrorist organizations and requiring the Arizona Department of Homeland Security to do everything within its authority to address themVoting noopposes this measure, leaving drug cartels without a state terrorist designation and adding no new duty for the Arizona Department of Homeland SecurityAdopting this law would: 1) Prohibit schools and athletic associations from authorizing any individual to use a restroom, locker room, shower room, or other private space that is not designated for their sex; 2) Define sex as the "biological status as male or female as recorded at birth on the individual's original birth certificate;" and 3) Not make exceptions for girls to play on boys’ sports teams, even in places where it’s currently allowed.
Voting yessupports requiring schools and athletic associations to limit restrooms, locker rooms, shower rooms, other private spaces, and sports teams by sex as recorded on an original birth certificate, with no exception for girls playing on boys’ teamsVoting noopposes adopting this law, keeping current rules for private spaces and sports teams, including where girls are allowed to play on boys’ teams todayThis measure would prohibit the government from installing and using new photo enforcement systems (think: speed and red-light cameras) to ID people who violate traffic laws and require local governments that have installed such systems to get voter thumbs-up to keep using them.
Voting yessupports banning new speed and red-light cameras and requiring local governments to win voter approval to keep using the ones they haveVoting noopposes this measure, letting governments keep installing and using speed and red-light cameras without a public voteThis measure would require that certain school districts (those with more than 7,500 students or counties with a population greater than 500,000) spend at least 60% of their budget on direct instructional expenses. What are direct instructional expenses? The auditor general would determine that (but probably things like teacher salaries and classroom expenses).
Voting yessupports requiring certain larger school districts to spend at least 60% of their budget on direct instructional expenses, as defined by the auditor generalVoting noopposes this measure, setting no minimum share of school district budgets that must go to direct instruction
Also on the ballot
Other races Arizona voters will decide.
- Lieutenant Governor
- Attorney General
- Secretary of State
- Mine Inspector
- Superintendent of Public Instruction
- Treasurer
- Corporation Commission (2 seats)
- State Senate
- State House
- State Supreme Court
- Intermediate appellate courts
- School boards
- Municipal government
- Recalls (removal of elected officials from office through a referendum)
- Local ballot measures
Whose job is it?
Ten things government does. Tap the office that does each one.
Whose job is it to…
1 of 10
Declare a state of emergency after a hurricane or flood?
Pass it on
Know someone voting in Arizona?
Send them the guide. It takes one tap, and it saves them an evening of arguing in a group chat.
A prayer for Arizona
Lord of the desert and the mountains, we lift up Arizona before You. As Arizonans prepare to choose their next governor and members of Congress, give them that same steadiness. In a race where the issues are real and the stakes are high, may voters seek wisdom from above, not just from the loudest voices on their screens.
We pray for the candidates running across Arizona; may their campaigns be marked by honesty rather than theater. May the candidates speak truthfully about the challenges facing their state and propose solutions with real merit. And on and after Election Day, may Arizona's leaders govern with humility and genuine care for every resident, not just the ones who voted for them.
Amen.