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Washington Post
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Democrats face another split over age and values in Arizona
Tuesday's special election primary to replace Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Arizona), who died in office earlier this year, is exposing broader Democratic Party rifts over age, experience, values and what it takes to improve the party's success rate on the national level. Grijalva's daughter, Adelita Grijalva, who served on the Pima County governing board until recently, is the Democratic front-runner. She faces two competitive opponents, including 25-year-old political newcomer Deja Foxx, a content creator and activist who has appeared to gain momentum in recent weeks and left some Democrats wondering if she can replicate a surprise victory like Zohran Mamdani's upset win in the New York City mayoral primary last month. The third prominent candidate, Daniel Hernandez, 35, is a former state House member who as a congressional intern helped save the life of his boss after a mass shooting.
CNN
14-07-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Arizona special election primary roiled by Democratic debates over age, experience and legacy
Tensions within the Democratic Party over age, representation and experience have roiled a special election primary in southwest Arizona, where a young, social media-savvy activist is taking on the daughter of Rep. Raúl Grijalva, who died in March. Former Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva, 54, has sought to strike a balance between pitching herself as a continuation of her father's establishment-bucking progressive legacy and embracing the broad support she's received from Democratic groups and leaders. Her two top rivals — 25-year-old activist Deja Foxx and 35-year-old former state Rep. Daniel Hernandez — have sought to turn her last name and endorsements into a liability. 'People are hungry for change candidates, they're tired of legacy last names,' Foxx told CNN earlier this month. 'The political establishment is not as strong as the people who make up this party.' The Tuesday primary has highlighted the ongoing debate over generational change that was further fueled by former President Joe Biden's late decision to exit the 2024 presidential race following questions about his cognitive ability. All of the Democratic candidates have vowed to push back on President Donald Trump's sweeping domestic policy law, which narrowly passed while House Democrats had three vacant seats held by lawmakers in their 70s who died this year. The contest — which includes a familiar rivalry between a seemingly inevitable front-runner and a challenger promising generational change — has also drawn some comparisons to last month's New York City mayoral primary, where 33-year-old state Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani won a decisive upset victory against former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The comparison isn't a clean one. There are no major policy differences between Grijalva and Foxx, who both support progressive policies such as 'Medicare for All' and have vowed to push back on Trump's agenda, particularly on immigration. Grijalva also lacks the political baggage of the former governor, who resigned in disgrace amid a sexual harassment scandal. 'When I started hearing those comparisons, I was like, 'Am I supposed to be Cuomo in this?'' Grijalva said in an interview with CNN. 'That's just crazy.' Grijalva has expressed frustration with what she described as a narrative that she was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. That discounts her own political record, she said, which includes nearly two decades on the Tucson Unified School District governing board and four years as a county supervisor, both positions her father held before her. 'Up until the last, what, month and a half, the words 'Grijalva' and 'establishment' have never been used in the same sentence, ever,' she said. 'Unless it's 'Grijalva fights against the establishment.'' The question now is whether voters in the district, who sent former Rep. Grijalva to Congress for more than two decades, want to continue the tradition or shake things up. Whoever wins the Tuesday Democratic primary will be heavily favored to win the September 23 general election. 'If you opened your political science book from 2002, it would have told you that the name ID of Grijalva was enough to carry the race,' said Stacy Pearson, a Phoenix-based Democratic strategist. 'It's just not the case anymore.' Pearson described the race as a jump ball between the three leading candidates, depending on who casts a ballot in what's expected to be a low-turnout election in a district that includes parts of Tucson and nearly all of Arizona's border with Mexico. 'It's going to be such a strange turnout model, and the level of frustration with the status quo is so high that this environment might be absolutely perfect for an underdog to come in and win it,' she said. The three candidates have been making their case on the airwaves. As of Friday, Grijalva and her allies spent $754,000 on TV ads, while Foxx spent $614,000 and Hernandez spent $509,000, according to AdImpact. Hernandez, a former school board member who spent six years in the state Legislature under Republican majorities, has embraced a more centrist lane, particularly when it comes to health care and mining. He has brushed off efforts to label him a moderate, however, and criticized Democrats who he said use being in the political minority as an excuse for not passing legislation. 'I think that's the thing that people have said: 'Well, you work with folks on the other side of the aisle,'' he told CNN in an interview. 'Well, when you're in the minority in the state Legislature, you don't have any options.' Grijalva's ads have emphasized her progressive platform, her endorsements from key figures — including both of Arizona's US senators and independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders — and her family. 'When you grow up Grijalva, you learn how to fight and who you're fighting for,' she says in one ad that features images and clips of her father and other relatives. 'I know how to fight and win because I learned from the best.' Foxx's most prominent ally, meanwhile, has been former Democratic National Committee Vice Chair David Hogg, who endorsed her this month. Hogg, 25, announced earlier this year that his group, Leaders We Deserve, plans to spend $20 million boosting young candidates, including in primary challenges against incumbents in safe Democratic seats that he deems 'ineffective.' The support from Hogg, who campaigned with Foxx in Tucson on Friday, only further fueled the comparisons to the New York City mayoral race, where Leaders We Deserve endorsed Mamdani. But it also brings to mind another race, last month's Democratic primary to fill the seat of former Rep. Gerry Connolly, who also died earlier this year. Hogg's pick, Virginia state Delegate Irene Shin, lost handily to former Connolly staffer James Walkinshaw. Hogg said in a statement that Foxx brings 'unmatched clarity, conviction, and lived experience' to issues facing working families. Foxx has emphasized her backstory as the daughter of a single mother who relied on programs such as Medicaid, food stamps and Section 8 housing to highlight the urgency she says she would bring to Congress. She has argued that her version of fighting the Trump administration is informed by her decade of experience as an activist. And she's framed herself as the candidate who would break the status quo, frequently ribbing Grijalva for inheriting her father's donor list. Grijalva has pushed back, noting she's not the lead fundraiser in the race. She said that 93% of her donors had never given money to her family before this race and that her father was not a prolific fundraiser. The former county supervisor criticized some of the Foxx campaign's social media content that she said was misleading. 'Talk about what you're going to bring to the table, not disparaging and maligning people who have served this community for decades. I just think that is in really poor taste,' Grijalva said. 'There's a lot of throwing under the bus and a lot of 'look at me.'' Grijalva's allies have also jumped into the race. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus, which endorsed her, has sought to frame the contest as a fight for representation for the district, which is more than 60% Latino. 'Anyone who sees Arizona's 7th district as anything other than a fight for Latino representation in America is enabling all those who seek to disenfranchise our community and silence our voices,' California Rep. Linda Sánchez, chairwoman of CHC BOLD PAC, the caucus's fundraising arm, said in a statement. A Foxx campaign spokesperson said the insinuation that Foxx is 'anything other than capable of representing the people of this district is frankly gross.' 'We are focused on putting forward policies to make their lives better and fighting back against Trump, not dividing our community,' the spokesperson, Andrew Mamo, told CNN.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Special primary election set to take place for Arizona congressional seat: Here's what to know
PHOENIX - In July, voters in parts of Arizona will take place in the first of two special elections that will select a replacement for former Congressman Raúl Grijalva in Congress. Here's what to know about the election. The House seat for the state's 7th Congressional District is up for election. The backstory The elections were triggered by the death of Raúl Grijalva in March. Grijalva, who announced his cancer diagnosis in April 2024, died as a result of treatment complications. Grijalva, the son of a Mexican immigrant, was first elected to the House in 2002. Prior to his time in Congress, Grijalva served in various public offices for decades, including the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board and the Pima County Board of Supervisors. Arizona's 7th Congressional District, according to a map prepared by the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission, covers parts of the West Valley, parts of Tucson and parts of Yuma, along with the cities of Gila Bend and Nogales. What we know Per a proclamation made by Governor Katie Hobbs on March 15, 2025, the special primary election for Grijalva's seat will take place on July 15, with a special general election to take place on September 23. Under Arizona law, a special primary and special general election must be called because the vacancy happened within six months of the next general election. Arizona's next general election is set to take place in November 2026. Big picture view According to the Arizona Secretary of State's Office website, there are 12 candidates in the primary election. Of the candidates, six identify as Democrats, while another three identify as Republicans. The other four are write-in candidates. Deja Foxx Adelita Grijalva Patrick Harris, Sr. Daniel Hernandez Jose Malvido, Jr. Daniel Francis Butierez, Sr. Jorge Rivas Jimmy Rodriguez Andy Fernandez (Write-In) Eduardo Quintana (Write-In) Gary Swing (Write-In) Richard Grayson (Write-In) Per the Arizona Secretary of State's website, the deadline for voter registration in the special primary was June 16, so it is too late to register to vote for the special primary. However, it is not too late to register to vote in the special general election, as that deadline is 11:59 p.m. on August 25. Dig deeper According to only voters who reside within the boundaries of the state's 7th Congressional District will be eligible to vote in the special primary and general election. For the special primary election, the website states that eligible voters who have registered a political party preference will receive the ballot for their respective party, while registered independents can contact their county recorder to select a Democratic or Republican primary ballot. Independent voters, according to the website, cannot select a ballot for either the Green Party, the Libertarian Party, or the No Labels Party, as all three parties are conducting closed primaries. While people can vote by early ballot for this primary, the deadline to request an early ballot has passed. Voters can check their county recorder's office for more information on where and how they can vote in the special primary. County Election Officials Contact Information - Arizona Secretary of State's Office Arizona's Citizens Clean Elections Commission has held two separate debates for the Republican and Democratic candidates in the primary, and they can be watched below. What's next The special general election, as mentioned above, will take place on September 23, and early voting for that election will begin on August 27.
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Yahoo
Humans caused thousands of Arizona acreage to burn in spring. Feds now seek to prosecute
Federal officials are seeking prosecutions for four human-caused wildfires that burned through southeastern Arizona this spring, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Human activity started the Redington Fire (Pima County), Stronghold Fire (Cochise County), Cody Fire (Pinal County), and Jacobson Fire (Graham County), which burned a combined 3,406 acres and at least 18 structures, according to Forest Service announcements. All those fires are now under control by firefighters or extinguished. Law enforcement agencies have not announced any action against the individuals suspected of being responsible as of June 11, and federal officials stated that their investigations are still ongoing. The Pinal County Sheriff's Department has cited one individual, 67-year-old David Lindley, for allegedly starting the Cedar Fire, which burned 10 acres near Oracle in Pima County on May 20. Lindley was charged with reckless burning, a state misdemeanor, on the same day the fire started. A sheriff's department spokesperson said it was unclear exactly how Lindley started the fire. A deputy responded to a call regarding a fire that was 'getting out of control quickly,' according to an incident report. When the deputy arrived, emergency fire and medical personnel were treating Lindley for dehydration. Lindley reportedly told the deputy that he was working a mining claim when he lit a cigarette and fell asleep, starting the fire. The deputy also heard from others on the scene that Lindley stated he had started the blaze as a 'signal fire' because he was stranded at the claim without water, though Lindley did not validate that statement. Lindley told the deputy he was working the claim with a friend, who left him alone without any water. Crews suppressed the resulting Cedar Fire throughout the afternoon, stopping its forward progress by that evening. The fire did not burn any structures. The most damaging of the human-caused spring fires was the Cody Fire, which consumed 1,223 acres southeast of Oracle in late May. The flames destroyed five homes and eight other structures. Residents of Oracle were evacuated for seven days while the fire burned. The Pinal County Sheriff's Department has not cited anyone in connection with that fire. All five fires were part of a larger rash of blazes that sparked in southeastern Arizona during the spring months. Lightning started two other blazes, the Parker Fire in Cochise County and the Ranch Fire in Santa Cruz County, during the spring. Federal and state lands in southeastern Arizona have been under stage 2 fire restrictions since May, meaning campfires, fireworks, smoking away from cleared areas, recreational shooting, and the use of gas-powered motors off established roads are prohibited. Arizona fire officials predicted in 2024 that human-caused fires could flare up this spring with hot and windy conditions and late precipitation. Humans start roughly 90% of the wildland fires in Arizona every year, according to the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management. The state of Arizona can charge thousands of dollars in fines for individuals who cause fires, even accidentally. Carelessly throwing cigarettes, working outside with metal tools, dragging trailer chains, driving off-road vehicles without shielded mufflers, discharging firearms, and other activities can all lead to wildfires. Individuals charged with reckless burning can also face up to six months in jail under Arizona law. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Federal officials investigating four human-caused wildfires in Arizona
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Yahoo
Secretive Russian-Made Mi-17 Helicopter Makes Unusual Appearance In Tucson
Residents of the Tucson, Arizona area were startled earlier this week by a group of helicopters, including at least one Russian-made Mi-17 Hip, making very low nighttime flights as part of what turned out to be a U.S. military exercise. This kind of domestic urban training is not uncommon, especially for U.S. special operations forces, and often comes at least as a surprise to bystanders. However, this instance is notably out of the ordinary in that the helicopters look to belong to a particularly shadowy unit. Imagery of the helicopters flying over Tucson first began to emerge on social media on the night of June 17-18. The Pima County Sheriff's Department subsequently confirmed to local media that the helicopters, one of which was an Mi-17 with an overall gray paint scheme, were affiliated with the U.S. military. The grounds of an abandoned school were used as part of the training exercise. Why are these helicopters flying around the south side this low and with no lights? And being followed? Escorted? Been over an hour. What is happening?? @whatsuptucson @TmzTucson @DanMarriesKOLD @Mary_reports @kgun9 @KVOA @KOLDNews @Tucson_Police — Brianna 8A (@Brianna8a) June 18, 2025 — Dan Marries (@DanMarriesKOLD) June 19, 2025 — Dan Marries (@DanMarriesKOLD) June 19, 2025 'The only thing I knew was that there was a lot of noise, flash bangs, helicopters, personnel, lights, sirens, that type of stuff,' Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos, who was apparently unaware that this week's exercise was set to occur, told KOLD News 13, a local CBS-affiliated television station yesterday. 'From my understanding, we didn't even train. We were just there to assist the DoD in their training efforts.' 'When he looked into it, he found out his SWAT team facilitated the location with the Department of Defense to use solely for their training weeks ago,' KOLD's report added. 'I will not blame DoD. I will not blame South Tucson. This was on us. We could easily have said, use our location (elsewhere) at 10 p.m., I don't understand what the thinking was there.' Nanos apologized for the lack of communication with the public and pledged not to let a similar incident happen in the future. TWZ has reached out to the Pima County Sheriff's Department and the U.S. military for more information. As it turns out, an additional video, seen below, was posted on Instagram on June 17 showing what looks to be the same gray Mi-17 flying together with a trio of Bell 407 helicopters just outside Tucson. There was also a sighting of an identical-looking Hip at Pinal Airpark northwest of Tucson earlier this month. For all those wondering what's flying around lights off around Tucson last night. 3 ATO Bell 407s trailed by their Mi-17 flying yesterday near Tucson, Arizona. The grey Mi-17 was also spotted at the local airport. — Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) June 19, 2025 I've compiled information on the DoD training that occurred in Tucson, AZ on the 17th of June into a briefing document on my Obsidian is written with a focus on the involvement of the Army's Aviation Technology Office and their use of — galangalroot (@bayardsurveyor) June 20, 2025 Whether or not it may have been a factor in the lack of advance notice to the public or Sheriff Nanos about the exercise, the gray Mi-17 seen during the exercise is a dead ringer for Hips tied to a highly secretive U.S. Army element known as the Aviation Technology Office (ATO). Previously known as the Flight Concepts Division (FCD), ATO is headquartered at Felker Army Airfield, which is part of Fort Eustis in Virginia. In addition to gray-painted examples, ATO-linked Mi-17s have also been seen painted tan and wearing a tan-and-brown camouflage scheme. These helicopters have a distinctive configuration that includes a nose-mounted weather radar, a sensor ball turret under the right side of the cockpit, supplemental armor panels around the front, a large particle separator in front of their engine intakes, and various antennas on the fuselage and tail boom. From FB: "This was taken by a friend of mine who works at Pinal Airpark a week and a half ago it is an MI-17 Helicopter that is operated by the US Government. DOD to be exact. The helicopter came in broad daylight and is flying out of Pinal for these exercises" — lecrayon (@lecrayon11) June 19, 2025 ATO is understood to operate several Bell 407s in a configuration that aligns with what can be seen in the recent video shot outside Tucson. Both types were notably seen together at a farm in North Carolina back in May 2021 after the Mi-17 made an emergency landing there. The Bell 407 brought in additional personnel and repair parts to get the Hip airborne again, as you can read more about here. In January 2021, Bell 407s likely belonging to ATO had also been spotted flying around Los Angeles and other nearby locales, conducting what appeared to be urban training that included touch-and-goes on helipads on top of a number of buildings. TWZ reported on those sightings at the time. — Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) January 12, 2021 Gray-painted Mi-17s with the same general configuration were also spotted in North and South Carolina in separate instances last year. Aviation Unicorn Alert Earlier today I might have heard through the grapevine that this ultra rare Soviet designed Russian MI-17 was coming by @iFlyCAE so I grabbed the camera with only about 2 minutes to spare and went out to sure enough catch it on — ☈ Chris Jackson ☈ (@ChrisJacksonSC) October 2, 2024 A mysterious Soviet-era transport helicopter unexpectedly landed in a field in Eldorado, North Carolina. Several men with backpacks disembarked and headed into the nearby woods, leaving the Mi-171E1 (20-2131) behind overnight. H/t @jcameronmcso. — Christiaan Triebert (@trbrtc) August 13, 2024 As already noted, U.S. special operations forces, in general, regularly train in and around cities and towns across the United States, including for air assault missions. Doing so offers valuable real-world opportunities to hone important skill sets that cannot otherwise be replicated to the same degree with dedicated urban training facilities. This includes the fact that these are 'live' locations full of real hazards and neutral bystanders. At the same time, poor and/or short-notice communication with the public, as well as more serious screwups, have caused controversy around these kinds of training events, which can also involve automatic guns firing blank rounds and simulated explosive devices, on multiple occasions in the past. When it comes to ATO (and FCD before it), specifically, it remains one of the most secretive aviation units within the U.S. military. From what is known publicly, it specializes in providing discreet aviation support for covert and clandestine operations, and also has a bleeding-edge developmental function. For instance, ATO/FCD is understood to have been involved with the development of the stealthy derivatives of the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter employed during the 2011 raid in Abbottabad, Pakistan, that led to the death of then-Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. It is worth noting here that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) also has a long history of operating Mi-17 variants, including through various secretive contractors. CIA-linked Hips were very visibly active as part of evacuation operations in Afghanistan after the fall of the capital Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021. We found (and corroborated with flight data) that one of the Mi-171E helicopters was inadvertently captured in a livestream by @MARCATV, a Spanish news outlet, as it flew from HKIA to the CIA compound toward the compound on Aug. 20. — Christiaan Triebert (@trbrtc) September 1, 2021 Other less secretive elements of the U.S. military also make use of contractor-operated Mi-17s, as well as other foreign fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, for training and evaluation purposes. The Hip is in widespread use globally in a wide variety of configurations, including heavily armed transport types. It is a design American forces regularly encounter in service with allies and partners, and that is also part of the potential threat picture for operations worldwide. Still, the particular features of the gray Mi-17 seen this week in the Tucson area, together with the Bell 407s, point most strongly to ATO. Whether or not more details emerge about the recent urban training exercise in Tucson, Arizona, the participants in this case look to have been particularly unusual. Contact the author: joe@
