Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva, Vice Chair District 5.
This story was updated.
Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva is entering the race to take over her late father's vacant seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, according to a campaign announcement Monday morning.
“I am running for Congress because Southern Arizona deserves bold leadership that will fight for working families and stand up to Donald Trump,” Grijalva said in a press release. “I've spent my life as an advocate, fighting for the brighter future we all deserve…In Congress, I will work to create opportunities to help all our families achieve their American Dream - no matter who you are, where you come from, or where you live.”
In 2020, Grijalva was the first Latina elected to the Pima County Board of Supervisors, where she represents District Five. She also served on the Tucson Unified School District governing board for 20 years.
Grijalva has followed in her father's footsteps. The late congressman Raúl Grijalva held that seat for more than 20 years. He died earlier this month due to complications from cancer treatment. He also served on the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board and the Pima County Board of Supervisors. However, in an interview with AZPM News, Grijalva emphasized that she has the political background to stand on her own.
“It's not just, ‘oh, that's Raul’s daughter’ and that's why everyone is supporting her, because they feel bad,” she said. “I do believe that I have my own record, that I can stand on my own two feet.”
Grijalva claims to have met her signature goal in the first five hours of her congressional campaign, making her the first candidate to appear on the ballot. To qualify on the July primary ballot, democratic candidates would need at least 798 signatures from registered voters in the district.
“Southern Arizona wants a progressive voice,” Grijalva said regarding her signature count. “They want to keep a strong, bold leader that's going to speak up for them, and I am honored and privileged that they think that I am that person.”
Grijalva said she would submit a letter later in the day to the Pima County Board of Supervisors announcing that she is resigning from her position on the board as of April 4. That resignation allows the process to name her replacement to begin sooner rather than later.
She is one of nearly 30 people who have filed the paperwork to replace the late Raul Grijalva as the representative from Arizona's 7th Congressional District. So far, 14 Democrats and 10 Republicans have filed statements of interest as well as two Libertarians, one Green Party, and one No Labels candidate.
The primary is on July 15, and the general election will be on Sept. 23.
Christopher Conover contributed to this report.
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