Legislative Elections
The District DeskLegislative District 23
Debate availableLD23 · 2-Year Term
Population
241,104
Registered Voters
130,292
District Lean
D+7.0
Voter Registration Breakdown
General Election Debate
Legislative District 23 General Election Debate
General Election Debate
Legislative District 23 General Election Debate
State Senate
Brian Fernandez
Democrat · Senate
Brian Fernandez has held the LD23 Senate seat since 2023 and served in the state House from 2021 to 2023. A Yuma High School and Arizona State University graduate, he works in software and founded the CRM company Symfodium. He has won two general elections by nearly identical margins, over Gary Garcia Snyder in 2022 and Altherr in 2024, after beating Jesus Lugo Jr. in that year's primary.
Michelle Altherr
Republican · Senate
Michelle Altherr is making her second run at this Senate seat. In 2024 she was unopposed in the Republican primary and lost to Democratic Sen. Brian Fernandez. She has not held public office, serving instead as a Republican precinct committeeman and legislative district chairman, and she has campaigned with San Luis Republicans and the Latinos for Trump effort. She describes herself as a 15-year Air Force veteran and signed a term-limits pledge.
Prominent Endorsements
State House
Mariana Sandoval
Democrat · House
Mariana Sandoval, a paralegal who has worked for nonprofit legal aid and the state attorney general's office, has held a District 23 House seat since January 2023. She topped the field in 2022 and was re-elected in 2024. No bill she has sponsored has become law; this year she tried to ban police from wearing masks on duty by amending the language onto a Republican bill, and Republicans blocked the debate.
Prominent Endorsements
Michele Peña
Republican · House
Michele Peña won her first term in an unusual way: she took the 2022 Republican primary as a write-in candidate, then won the general election. She works for a Yuma farming company, handling seasonal harvest transitions and hiring, and sits on the House Education Committee; her best-known bill would have extended the shelf life of AA-graded eggs by six days. She skipped the Clean Elections debate.
Prominent Endorsements
Emilia Cortez
Democrat · House
Completed the Agenda's candidate questionnaire
Emilia Cortez is an economic development specialist for the Quechan Indian Tribe in Yuma who led the Girl Scouts in Yuma County for more than 15 years. She ran for Yuma County recorder in 2024 and lost to Republican David Lara. Cortez declined the Clean Elections primary debate in June but appeared at the general election debate on September 30, where she said sheriffs are federal employees and was corrected by Rep. Mariana Sandoval. She has not held elected office.
Prominent Endorsements
Gary Garcia Snyder
Republican · House
Gary Garcia Snyder is on his third legislative ballot in three cycles. He won the 2022 Republican Senate primary unopposed, then lost to Brian Fernandez. In 2024 he moved to the District 25 House primary and finished third of four. He studied international business at Arizona State University and has worked in marketing, sales and business consulting, including as a marketing director and a solar sales manager. He was unopposed in this year's primary.