Arizona Morning Briefing, 11-5-26: Election Results Continue, Hobbs Claims School Voucher Crackdown, a 19-Year-Old Recorder, the First Female Navajo Nation Leader, And More

•IT’S NOT OVER YET–Though an historic Democratic takeover of both houses of the Arizona legislature appears assured, some races are going back and forth. As of this morning, Republican Sen. Janae Shamp has overtaken Democrat Eric Stafford in LD29, moving from a narrow deficit to a 40,789–38,364 lead in the latest posted returns. Republican Rep. Nick Kupper has also overtaken Tiffany Byrne in LD25, leading 33,815–32,426 in the contest for the district’s second House seat.

In Arizona’s closely-contested Congressional races, in CD2 Republican incumbent Eli Crane now leads Democrat Jonathan Nez 143,106–140,871, a 2,235-vote advantage. Nez had led by just 86 votes in Wednesday morning’s count. In CD5 Republican Mark Lamb now leads Democrat Elizabeth Lee 141,352–134,940, a 6,412-vote advantage. Lee previously held an unexpected early lead. Just another reminder that Arizona remains the purplest state in the union.

Also in flippage, Proposition 141, the proposed constitutional restriction on mileage-based vehicle taxes and tracking, now has approximately 51% support to 49% opposition in posted returns, after appearing headed for defeat Wednesday morning.

•HOBBS VOWS VOUCHER CRACKDOWN–Governor Katie Hobbs, in a rally the day after her overwhelming re-election victory, said that she planned to govern from a pragmatic bipartisan center,But she also signaled that bipartisanship has its limits, renewing her opposition to Arizona’s ‘out of control’ school voucher program that’s popular among Republicans. “You told us what keeps you up at night,” she said. “The grocery bill, the rent or the mortgage, the price at the pump, the cost of a prescription. Washington keeps driving those costs up, and you chose a governor who will keep working to bring them down.”

John Giles, Arizona’s first-ever lieutenant governor, spoke in a folksy tone about his undefined role. “There’s no handbook, there’s no predecessor to call and ask for advice,” he said. “But at least on the bright side, there’s nobody around to say, ‘Hey, the other guy did it better last time.’”

In a rally at a Carpenter’s Union Hall, defeated Republican nominee Rep. Andy Biggs thanked his supporters in a “challenging cycle.”

•AND A 19-YEAR-OLD SHALL RECORD THEM–The Arizona politician most likely to get an interview call from The Today Show this week is 19-year-old Sebastian Matta, a sophomore philosophy major at Arizona State who walloped Republican Jeff Dial on Tuesday to become the Maricopa County Clerk of the Superior Court. Matta faced criticism for submitting campaign-finance reports late. He attributed the problem to an accountant who stopped responding. He also didn’t hire a campaign manager until mid-October, when signs pointed toward him actually winning. Matta will manage a $65 million budget. “I understand it’s very scary to have a 19 year old be your boss,” he said.

•NAVAJO NATION ELECTS FIRST FEMALE PRESIDENT–Navajo Nation Council Speaker Crystalyne Curley has become the first woman elected president of the Navajo Nation, defeating Justin Jones by just 1,115 votes in unofficial returns. Outgoing President Buu Nygren has congratulated Curley. “And to the little girls that are out there, shíyázhí, anything is possible,” Curley said in her victory speech. Jones is refusing to concede. He claims voting irregularities and is calling for a recount. “The fight has just begun,” he says. We’ve seen how well that’s worked out in Arizona in recent years.