Hobbs retains governor’s office after vetoing 540-plus GOP measures
PHOENIX — Democrats won control of both chambers of the Arizona Legislature and retained the governor’s office, giving the party its first trifecta in the state since 1966. The Associated Press called enough legislative races on Friday to confirm that the Arizona House and Senate both flipped.
The AP calls races individually, and it can take several days after voting for a call to be made, depending on when election officials tally the ballots and how close the elections are. The news organization reported that there have not been major disputes or disruptions this year.
In Arizona, Republicans had held the House for 60 years and the Senate since the early 1990s. The twin flips end an arrangement in which Hobbs, a Democrat in her first term, governed alongside a Legislature controlled by the opposing party.
Hobbs vetoed more than 540 measures passed by the Republican-led Legislature during that term, on policies including taxes, immigration and voting laws. Those vetoes were the check on legislation sent to her desk by Republican majorities.
Hobbs has said she is looking to address water issues and affordability, and to take on fraud and abuse in the state’s school voucher program. With Democrats holding both chambers, bills reaching the governor’s desk will now originate with majorities that share her party affiliation.
The Arizona result came as Democrats made major gains in this week’s elections nationwide and took control of both chambers of Congress.
Overall, Democrats took full control — both statehouse chambers and governors’ offices — in at least six states where they previously shared power with Republicans. Besides Arizona, the AP reported those wins came in the battleground states of Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Nevada and Wisconsin.
The flips were not confined to states that are normally competitive. Democrats won control of the Texas House, which Republicans have held since 2003, and elected Gina Hinojosa as the state’s first Democratic governor since George W. Bush ousted Ann Richards in 1994. Republicans held on to the Texas Senate.
Democrats also flipped the lower chambers of the legislatures in Maine and North Carolina and both chambers in New Hampshire, where Republican Kelly Ayotte was reelected. The count could grow as results are tallied in additional states.
The National Council of State Legislatures says the election is likely to end up as the election with the most legislative seats and chambers changing parties since 2010, when Republicans took over governments across the country amid the Great Recession.
Democrats will also hold the governor’s office in at least 28 states, according to the AP. Results are still pending in Alaska and Kansas.
The last time Democrats held the Arizona governorship and both legislative chambers was 1966.