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LD8 · 2-Year Term
Population
250,737
Registered Voters
114,219
District Lean
D+7.8
Voter Registration Breakdown
Debate recap
Republicans in deep blue Tempe legislative district bash socialism, Democrats “The Democrats have moved so far to the left and have so many things that are creating havoc in our communities and culture that I want at least to have an alternative,” Republican candidate Bill Loughrige said, adding that he’s met his opponent, Kuby, and he likes her.
Read the recap: LD8 debate recap (opens in a new tab)State Senate
Democrat · Senate
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Lauren Kuby won the LD8 Senate seat in 2024 after two terms on the Tempe City Council, where she served as vice mayor and led a 2018 city dark-money disclosure measure that 91% of voters approved. She ran for the Corporation Commission in 2022 and lost. She was a sustainability scientist at Arizona State University. She plans to reintroduce a bill barring voucher money from private college tuition.
Prominent Endorsements
Republican · Senate
Bill Loughrige is making his third run for the Legislature. He lost a House race in 2020 and a House race in 2022. He has described himself as a retired senior special agent for the U.S. Customs Service and a former Phoenix beat cop who runs a private investigation and security business. He calls the school voucher program a net savings to the state.
State House
Democrat · House
Janeen Connolly is a retired senior government relations representative for Salt River Project who also taught communications at Arizona State University, where she earned a master's degree in advocacy communication after an associate degree from Maricopa Community College. She was appointed to former Gov. Jane Hull's Task Force on Employment for People with Disabilities. She declined the Clean Elections debate.
Prominent Endorsements
Democrat · House
Brian Garcia is an attorney who served on the Tempe Union High School District Governing Board from 2018 to 2023, including as its president and vice president. He holds bachelor's, master's and law degrees from Arizona State University and has worked for the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community and a voting-access advocacy group. He topped the 2026 Democratic primary after winning his seat in 2024.
Prominent Endorsements
Republican · House
Donald Hawker is a retired computer programmer with a mathematics degree from Old Dominion University who has run for the Legislature repeatedly without winning. He was unopposed in the 2026 Republican primary. At the Clean Elections debate he said Democrats have waged war on the country's morality and children's innocence.