Arizona Election: Katie Hobbs Secures Second Term

Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs won re-election in Arizona on Tuesday. She defeated Republican Rep. Andy Biggs in a contest for one of the nation's most closely watched governorships.

Hobbs ran as a moderate in a state that backed Donald Trump by five percentage points in the 2024 presidential race. Her campaign focused on border security and tax cuts. She selected John Giles, a former Republican and Mesa mayor, as her lieutenant governor candidate.

The governor highlighted her bipartisan record during the race. Her team stated she signed more than 900 pieces of bipartisan legislation during her first term. She also cited a three-year pause on tax incentives for data centers as a key policy achievement.

Biggs criticized Hobbs for using her veto power frequently. "She doesn't give in on anything, pretty much," Biggs told Fox News in October. He argued he would work with the state Legislature rather than against it. Biggs also pressed Hobbs on the number of vetoes she issued over four years.

The candidates clashed over Hobbs' refusal to debate. Hobbs called such events "political theater" and had skipped debates in both 2022 and 2026. In 2022, she defeated Kari Lake by roughly 17,000 votes. Lake challenged that result in court but lost the case.

Hobbs attacked Biggs for supporting Trump's tariffs and voting against resolutions to end the Iran war. She also pointed to his reluctance to acknowledge Joe Biden's 2020 victory. "Andy Biggs won't admit that I won in '22 or that Trump lost in 2020, and I think that it is dangerous and wrong," Hobbs said on local radio in July.

Biggs conceded in October that "every court has said she's won" and that "she's the governor." When asked if he would accept the current election's outcome, he replied, "Yeah, I will." He added he would be happy to certify the results and believes Arizona's elections are more secure than in 2020.

Donald Trump initially supported businesswoman Karrin Taylor Robson when she entered the race in early 2025. He later endorsed Biggs after the congressman joined the contest. After Taylor Robson dropped out, Trump gave Biggs his "complete and total endorsement."