Explore the races, meet the candidates, and compare their priorities.
LD21 · 2-Year Term
Population
246,628
Registered Voters
135,004
District Lean
D+16.4
Voter Registration Breakdown
Debate recap
A Democratic socialist explains why she wants to “change the system” “But when we are talking about these mega data centers that are being built by billionaires and corporations as a way to continue to inflate this AI bubble, those are the types of campuses that I think we need to just ban outright for Arizona,” Democratic candidate Miranda Lopez said.
Read the recap: LD21 debate recap (opens in a new tab)State Senate
Democrat · Senate
Completed the Agenda's candidate questionnaire
Rosanna Gabaldón has served in the Legislature since 2013 - eight years in the House, then the Senate since 2021, and LD21 since the 2023 redistricting. A former Pima County clerk, she ran unopposed in the 2024 general election and won in 2022. None of the legislation she has sponsored since 2023 has become law, which is common for Democrats in the Republican-controlled Legislature. In her Clean Elections profile she lists public education, water sustainability and economic opportunity as her priorities.
Prominent Endorsements
Republican · Senate
Esteban Flores is making his second run for office after finishing fifth of five candidates in the 2024 at-large race for three seats on the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board. He has worked in radiology, anesthesia and endoscopy, including in trauma units. He declined the Clean Elections debate. In his Clean Elections candidate profile he says he "fought to improve education, protect children from inappropriate content, and defend parental authority."
State House
Democrat · House
Consuelo Hernandez, sister of Rep. Alma Hernandez and of former Rep. Daniel Hernandez, is seeking a third House term. She has served on the Sunnyside Unified School District Governing Board since 2018 and won her House seat in 2022, and she led the 2024 general. Five of her bills have been signed into law. A challenge to her candidacy over roughly $20,000 in late campaign finance fines failed in court this spring; she has since paid them.
Prominent Endorsements
Democrat · House
Completed the Agenda's candidate questionnaire
Miranda Lopez is a political organizer who took the second Democratic nomination in July, beating Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton 8,677 votes to 8,395. She directed the Pima County Democratic Party for nearly two years, organized with the Arizona Students Association and was treasurer of United Campus Workers while finishing a master's in public administration. A self-described democratic socialist, she wants the ESA voucher program eliminated, a moratorium on data centers and Arizona's right-to-work law repealed.
Republican · House
Christopher Kibbey is a Green Valley engineer with a master's in engineering who studied at Pima Community College and the University of Arizona. He has not held elected office. He lost the 2024 LD21 House race, finishing well behind second-place Democrat Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, and reported $650 in contributions and no expenditures that cycle. He declined the Clean Elections debate this year. His candidate profile says he will fight for "educational freedom" and border control.