An "I Voted" sticker, included with the early ballot for the 2024 election in Pima County.
Arizona Democrats are targeting swing districts to gain a majority in the state legislature. One area they have set their eyes on is Legislative District 17.
Legislative District 17 is seemingly a republican stronghold. The district, which encompasses more conservative areas like Pinal County’s Saddlebrook and Pima County’s Oro Valley and Marana, has a 9 percent-point GOP advantage.
But Democrats don’t see it that way.
“LD-17 is really the surprise story of the election, but it is really within reach,” Tucson Senator Priya Sundareshan said.
Sundareshan chairs the Arizona Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, whose only purpose is to get Democrats elected to the legislature.
“Most people, would not expect LD 17 to really be one of those target districts that…potentially could flip.”
Right now, Arizona’s House of Representatives holds a 2 seat Republican majority.
“We are really poised to be able to flip and take majorities, especially as Republicans continue to elect the more extreme candidates that are no longer really reflective of even where the Republican Party used to be,” Sundaresan said. LD-17’s race has two incumbent Republicans running, Cory McGarr and Rachel Jones. Democrat Kevin Volk is the single challenger, hoping to sweep one seat away. He has stood on one message: McGarr and Jones are too extreme.
“Remember when politics was different here in Arizona? When we had leaders who weren’t afraid to work together to get things done? Before extremists started trying to ban books and criminalize abortion?” a Volk campaign ad said.
Volk is not alone in that message either. John McLean is the democratic challenger for the district’s senate seat against republican Vince Leach, the district’s senator before Justine Wadsack unseated him in 2022. His messaging is that Leach will take away rights to issues like abortion.
“Our family was like so many others,” a McLean ad says. “We faced serious pregnancy complications and needed reproductive care. Care other families won’t receive if extremists like Vince Leach get their way.”
Nearly half a million dollars has poured into McLean’s race, with an additional $564,000 from outside funding supporting his campaign, according to the state's campaign finance website. In comparison, his opponent Leach falls behind in funds raised with nearly $322,000 and over $400,000 from outside funding advocating both for and against him.
Sundareshan says that what is seen is representative of the battleground that LD-17 is versus other districts.
“We look at the voting history of the district and how close have they been in years past to electing democratic representation and so we focus our resources and investment there.”
To put the money in context, look at the statewide race for the Arizona Corporation Commission. Funds raised for the Democrats in LD-17 far surpass funds raised for those seats. This type of fundraising is a rarity for legislative seats.
Democrats like Sundareshan see the 31 percent of independents in the district as key stakeholders for this election.
“There are so many independent voters who are not aligned with any given party, and they're looking for someone who's going to really talk to the issues.”
It has been more than three decades since Democrats held a majority in the Arizona legislature.
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