Secretary of State: 2026 candidates

Adrian Fontes

Democrat · Secretary of State

Completed the Agenda's candidate questionnaire

Adrian Fontes has been Arizona's secretary of state, the state's chief elections officer, since January 2023. Before that, the Marine Corps veteran and former prosecutor served a single term as Maricopa County Recorder, from 2017 to 2021. Fontes is seeking a second term against Republican state Rep. Alexander Kolodin, who has sued his office over election procedures.

Alexander Kolodin

Republican · Secretary of State

Completed the Agenda's candidate questionnaire

Alexander Kolodin has represented Scottsdale's Legislative District 3 in the Arizona House since 2023 and practices election law. The State Bar of Arizona put him on 18 months' probation in December 2023 over the so-called Kraken lawsuit challenging Arizona's 2020 presidential results. Kolodin sponsored HCR2001, the election measure on November's ballot, and beat former state GOP chair Gina Swoboda in the primary.

Duwayne Collier, the Green Party's nominee for secretary of state, faces civil and criminal investigations over allegations his campaign falsified the $5 qualifying contributions that unlocked about $739,000 in public funding. Collier sued the Clean Elections Commission to block a repayment order, and a judge dismissed the suit on September 30. His Clean Elections biography describes work in construction, sales and service.