By Staff Reporter |
Despite infighting publicized by a court battle that has lasted over a year, Maricopa County reported that its administration of the 2026 primary election was a success.
Primary election results were processed speedily. About a day — 27 hours — after the polls closed, 99% of ballots were tabulated and reported. After that initial 27-hour mark and as of Friday, there were approximately 3,000 ballots remaining: fewer than 900 provisional or action-needed ballots and around 2,000 ballots that required curing by the deadline on Sunday.
The county reported more than 676,000 ballots cast across more than 250 voting locations, representing more than 26% of total registered voters in the county. As of the end of June, Maricopa County reported having more than 22,000 individuals registered to vote who haven’t provided valid proof of citizenship.
More than 77,000 of the ballots returned were early ballots dropped off on Election Day. Out of those, 23,000 voters used the check-in process to verify their identity on site, enabling on-site tabulation.
Supervisor Mark Stewart credited the county’s elections department, recorder’s office, and poll workers in a press release. Per Stewart, voters and poll workers alike reported the early ballot process to be “fast, efficient, and secure,” which Stewart hailed as a “major step” for improving voter confidence and election results processing times.
“This was a tremendous team effort. The Elections Department, the Recorder’s Office, our poll workers, and every employee supporting the operation knocked it out of the park,” said Stewart.
The speedy turnaround may be attributable to staff efforts to process the ballots turned in on Election Day. Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap reported that his staff came in several hours after midnight the day after Election Day to complete signature verification on all early ballots by early that morning.
“A tremendous thank you to our dedicated elections team, who began work at 2:00 a.m., this morning, and completed the signature verification process in less than 6 hours while upholding the highest standards of accuracy, security, and election integrity,” stated the recorder’s office.
County Chair Supervisor Kate Brophy McGee credited early ballot voters for taking up the on-site identity verification process, rather than dropping off those ballots for post-election validation.
As of this report:
Gov. Katie Hobbs secured more than 293,000 votes in Maricopa County in her challenge-free primary election. Votes cast represented a 43% turnout.
Rep. Andy Biggs won the Republican gubernatorial primary with more than 252,000 votes. Fellow congressman David Schweikert came in second with more than 58,000 votes, followed by Scott Neely’s more than 22,000 votes, and then Ken Miceli’s more than 16,000 votes. Turnout reached 40%.
One Green candidate is in the running for governor, Risa Lombardo, who secured 243 votes. Teri Ann Hourihan secured the No Labels Party nomination with more than 3,600 votes, while Hugh Lytle came in second with 2,900 votes.
Amish Shah secured the Democratic nomination for the Congressional District 1 race with more than 28,000 votes. Marlene Galan-Woods came in second with more than 25,200 votes, followed by Jonathan Treble’s nearly 13,000 votes and Rick McCartney’s 6,000 votes. Voting turnout reached nearly 56%, with more than 75,000 ballots cast.
Jay Feely secured the Republican nomination for the Congressional District 1 race with more than 43,000 votes. State lawmaker Joseph Chaplik came in second with more than 31,000 votes, followed by John Trobough’s more than 12,000 votes. Turnout reached nearly 48%, and there were more than 92,000 ballots cast.
Jonathan Nez didn’t have any primary challengers for the Congressional District 2 race. He will face incumbent Republican Rep. Eli Crane in November, who also didn’t have any primary challengers.
Rep. Yassamin Ansari, the incumbent Democrat for Congressional District 3, didn’t have any primary challengers. A No Labels Party candidate, Alan Aversa, will face Ansari in November.
Rep. Greg Stanton prevailed in the Democratic primary challenge to his incumbency in Congressional District 4, securing more than 35,000 votes. Kai Newkirk came in second with more than 21,000 votes. Turnout reached 47%, and there were more than 58,000 total ballots cast.
Tisha Benoit won the No Labels Party primary for Congressional District 4 over John Fillmore, 979 votes to 518 votes. Turnout represented 44%, and there were more than 2,000 ballots cast.
Zuhdi Jasser was the sole candidate in the Congressional District 4 Republican primary.
Elizabeth Lee won the Democratic primary for Congressional District 5, securing more than 26,000 votes. Chris James came in second with more than 8,000 votes, followed by Brian Hualde with more than 5,000 votes. Turnout reached 45%, and there were more than 42,000 ballots cast.
Mark Lamb won the Republican primary for Congressional District 5, securing more than 40,000 votes. Daniel Keenan came in second with more than 31,000 votes. Turnout reached nearly 42%, and there were nearly 75,000 ballots cast.
Rep. Juan Ciscomani, the incumbent Republican for Congressional District 6, didn’t have any primary challengers. JoAnna Mendoza was the sole candidate in the Democratic Congessional District 6 primary.
Rep. Adelita Grijalva, the incumbent Democrat for Congressional District 7, didn’t have any primary challengers. Daniel Francis Butierez Sr. was the sole candidate in the Republican Congressional District 7 primary.
Likewise, incumbent Rep. Abe Hamadeh didn’t have any challengers in the Republican primary for Congressional District 8. Hamadeh will face off against Democratic candidate Bernadette Greene-Placentia, who prevailed with more than 31,000 votes over Ray Keeler’s 16,000 votes in the Democratic primary.
Rep. Paul Gosar also didn’t have a challenger in the Republican primary for Congressional District 9. Gosar will face off against the sole Democratic candidate, Dani Sterbinsky.
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