Days after their caucus decreased in size for the upcoming term in the Arizona Legislature, Senate Democrats chose their leadership team.
On Tuesday, Arizona Senate Democrats finalized their Caucus Leadership Team for the 57th Legislature.
The new Senate Minority Leader will be Priya Sundareshan (LD 18). The Minority Assistant Leader will be Flavio Bravo (LD 26). The Minority Whip will be Rosanna Gabaldón (LD 21), and the Minority Caucus Chair will be Lela Alston (LD 5).
PRESS RELEASE: Senate Democratic Leadership Announcement for the 57th Legislature pic.twitter.com/NavMChMTAl
In a statement after her election as Minority Leader for her chamber, Senator Sundareshan said, “It is a great honor that my fellow caucus members have elected me as their Minority Leader for the upcoming legislative session. The fight ahead will be uphill and the work will be hard. I am confident that along with my newly elected leadership team, we will deliver the very best possible for the people of Arizona. Our commitment to ensuring every Arizonan has access to a good paying job, affordable housing, quality education, and secure water for the next 100 years is unwavering.”
Sundareshan added, “While Republicans have expanded their majority, it is paramount that we communicate and provide a better, bipartisan pathway forward. No matter what setback we may face, our priorities will continue to center working class Arizonans, vulnerable populations, and our future generations.”
Gabaldon also acknowledged her election as Minority Whip on a post on her X account, writing, “I am honored that my fellow Democratic Senate Caucus members elected me to serve as Minority Whip. I look forward to working with the Leadership Team and the Democratic Caucus.”
I am honored that my fellow Democratic Senate Caucus members elected me to serve as Minority Whip. I look forward to working with the Leadership Team and the Democratic Caucus. pic.twitter.com/HSPBYYXvvi
The three Democrats are some of the most liberal in the Arizona Senate. According to the Arizona Free Enterprise Club, Gabaldón has a 3% lifetime score as of 2023, Sundareshan has a 4% lifetime score, and Bravo has a 7% lifetime score.
The returning and incoming class of Senate Democrat legislators have been relegated to bystanders in a divided Arizona government, where Republican leaders have largely run negotiations with Governor Katie Hobbs and her team on key matters over the past two years. In the final two years of Hobbs’ first term, the same arrangement is likely to occur, leaving legislative Democrats out of the loop on many issues.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
A bill to restrict foreign funding of Arizona elections is attracting some bipartisan support in this legislative session.
Earlier this week, the Senate Elections Committee passed SB 1374, which “requires a person to provide certification that the person is not the knowing recipient of foreign donations before entering into any agreement with a government entity to provide goods or services relating to elections administration.”
According to the fact sheet provided by the Arizona Senate, a ‘person’ is defined as “an individual, candidate, corporation or other entity or committee as prescribed by statute.”
The elections-related proposal, which was introduced by Senator Shawnna Bolick, passed the committee with a 6-2 vote. One Democrat, Senator Flavio Bravo, voted for the legislation in the committee.
In a statement to AZ Free News, Bolick said, “SB 1374 is a bill in support of free, fair, and transparent elections. Leading up to the 2020 elections, billionaires and big tech played an outsized influence in Arizona’s elections. In 2021, the Arizona legislature passed a law prohibiting election offices from receiving private monies for preparing, administering, or conducting an election. In October 2023, in Louisiana, the voters overwhelmingly voted to ban foreign funding of their elections by a vote of 72.57% in favor. When SB 1374 is signed into law, it will send a strong message that Arizona’s elections aren’t for sale by foreign billionaires.”
According to the legislature’s RTS system, representatives from the Arizona Free Enterprise Club and Heritage Action for America support the bill. A representative from the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office signed in as ‘neutral.’
Senators Borrelli, Farnsworth, Gowan, Hoffman, and Kavanagh; and Representatives Jones, McGarr, Montenegro, J. Parker, and Wilmeth have co-sponsored Bolick’s legislation.
SB 1374 awaits a vote in the full Senate chamber.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
After a state senator aired his frustrations with the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, two legislative vacancies have been filled.
On Friday and Monday, respectively, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors filled a vacant seat in the Arizona House of Representatives for Legislative District 13 and a vacant seat in the Senate for Legislative District 26.
Julie Willoughby was appointed for Legislative District 13. The newest House Republican fell short of victory in the 2022 election but found her way into the chamber in 2023 thanks to the expulsion of former Representative Liz Harris.
NEW: The Board of Supervisors has appointed Julie Willoughby to fill the Arizona House vacancy in Legislative District 13. Follow this link to read more: https://t.co/isQslfgZ3z
In announcing the selection of Willoughby, Maricopa Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman Jack Sellers issued the following statement: “I would like to thank the PC’s from District 13 for selecting three qualified candidates for our consideration. I interviewed all of them about important issues such as Prop 400, homelessness, water, and elections. We take this duty seriously and follow a process that includes background checks and interviews so residents can be confident in the person chosen to fill the vacant seat.”
House Speaker Ben Toma told AZ Free News, “We’re proud to welcome Representative Willoughby to the House and to be a part of our majority Republican Caucus. There is still a lot of important work for us to accomplish this session for the people of Arizona and we can’t wait to get it done.”
— Arizona House Republicans (@AZHouseGOP) May 5, 2023
Representative Flavio Bravo was appointed for Legislative District 26, opening up another vacancy to be filled in the state house. Bravo was selected after the resignation of former Senator Raquel Terán.
NEW: The Board of Supervisors has appointed Rep. Flavio Bravo to fill the Senate vacancy in Legislative District 26. Follow this link to read more: https://t.co/DOJpHFvV3i
Bravo’s appointment was also heralded by another Maricopa County Supervisor, Steve Gallardo, who stated: “I would like to thank the PC’s from District 26 for selecting three qualified candidates for our consideration. It was a difficult decision because I respect all three of these community leaders. Flavio Bravo knows this district well and will represent it vigorously in the Senate.”
— Arizona House Democrats (@AZHouseDems) May 8, 2023
The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors’ appointments came after Arizona Senator J.D. Mesnard took to the floor of his chamber to address the Board’s ongoing consideration of two legislative vacancies.
Senator Mesnard’s frustrations boiled over on the Senate floor as he laid out his charge against the Supervisors’ alleged delay in filling the two vacancies for 19 (Senate) and 20 (House) days. He informed his colleagues “the length of these vacancies is the longest, while we’ve been in session, in a half a century – 56 years!” Mesnard also said that 8.76 days is the historical average to fill the vacancy.
The East Valley lawmaker indicated that due to this historic delay, changes in statute could be on the horizon to ensure a more expedient selection by a county board of supervisors during an ongoing legislative session.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
Over half of the Arizona House Democrats are pushing to repeal the state’s ban on male athletes in K-12 female sports. The bill has yet to be assigned to a committee.
Freshman State Rep. Nancy Gutierrez (D-LD18) proposed the bill, HB2068. 14 Democrats signed on, including: State Reps. Flavio Bravo, Andrés Cano, Oscar De Los Santos, Melody Hernandez, Christopher Mathis, Analise Ortiz, Mariana Sandoval, Judy Schwiebert, Keith Seaman, Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, Laura Terech, and Stacey Travers. Democratic leadership also cosponsored the bill: Assistant Minority Leader Lupe Contreras and Minority Whip Marcelino Quiñonez.
Gutierrez, a Tucson High Magnet School yoga teacher, said that transgender athletes deserve to play on the team of their choosing. GLSEN Arizona, the state branch of the national organization pushing LGBTQ+ ideologies onto minors, endorsed the effort.
All of our students deserve the opportunity to play sports. This was a bill that my students specifically asked me to create and I was happy to fulfill my promise to them. @AZHouseDems@equalityarizonahttps://t.co/sFIW5Dkbgz
— Representative Nancy Gutierrez (@nancygforAZ) January 13, 2023
Gutierrez also opposes the state’s ban on gender transition procedures for minors, and the requirement for teachers to inform parents about their communication with students regarding sexuality or identity.
So, now thanks to @DougDucey and the @AZGOP, my trans students will be worried if they will be able to continue on their gender affirming paths. I have no words to describe how crushing this law is for those kids.
— Representative Nancy Gutierrez (@nancygforAZ) March 30, 2022
When students tell me something in confidence (that isn't putting them in danger) I will not betray that trust. Our kids must have trusted adults to talk to. This law is dangerous. https://t.co/2XEZWn2tMl
— Representative Nancy Gutierrez (@nancygforAZ) May 2, 2022
Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona (PPAZ), the political advocacy arm of Planned Parenthood Arizona, endorsed Gutierrez. Planned Parenthood Arizona offers hormone replacement therapy (HRT) on site and via telehealth. The effects of HRT may only last from six months to three years, meaning that patients must take it for life to experience its effects.
Last September, Planned Parenthood Arizona received a $10,000 grant from Phoenix Pride for their gender transition procedures, or “Gender Affirming Care” (GAC).
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) also endorsed Gutierrez. HRC, an activist organization, denies that males have biological advantages to females.
The legislature banned males from female sports last year through SB1165. Democratic legislators spoke out in opposition to the bill, claiming that transgender athletes had no competitive edge over their non-transgendered peers. They also claimed that the bill solved a non-issue, since so few transgender athletes existed in the state.
Males who attempt to transition socially and/or physically as females retain their physical advantages to females, such as testosterone, muscle mass, height, and fat distribution. Even with a year of hormone treatments, they retain significant advantages.
However, activist organizations such as the ACLU dismiss those scientific findings as speculative.
There are 18 states that have banned students from participating in sports of the opposite sex. In addition to Arizona, these are Utah, Idaho, Montana, South Dakota, Iowa, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, West Virginia, South Carolina, and Florida.
While Democratic legislators are focused on affirming preferred identities, Republican legislators are focused on affirming biological realities and parental authority. State Sen. John Kavanaugh (R-LD03) proposed a bill to prohibit K-12 schools from referring to a minor student by a pronoun that differs from the pronouns aligning from their biological sex without parental permission. The bill, SB1001, would also prohibit a school from requiring an employee or independent contractor to refer to students by their preferred pronouns.
Kavanaugh’s bill was scheduled for a hearing before the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
