Congressman Raúl Grijalva’s passing has triggered an aggressively competitive race to fill the now-vacant seat in Arizona’s 7th Congressional District, which covers parts of Pima, Yuma, La Paz, Cochise, and Maricopa counties. Despite a list of twenty contenders, most Arizona political pundits only see four with the backing needed to win. These include Grijalva’s daughter, Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva (D), former state legislator Daniel Hernández Jr. (D), Yuma restaurant owner Jorge Rivas (R), and business owner Daniel Butierez (R). At this late stage in the special election process, it’s unlikely that any others will jump into the mix.

Grijalva is arguably the favorite to win based on name recognition and existing political capital created by her father. That advantage is bolstered by CD7’s predominantly liberal/Democrat constituency. However, at least one Democrat lawmaker disagrees. AZ State Representative Alma Hernandez (D-20) is backing Hernández Jr., breaking with the majority of her fellow elected leaders. Posting on X, she reflected on her experience running for office, which applies as much to Hernández Jr. as it did to herself.

She wrote, “In 2018, so many told me to wait my turn not to do it (run for office). Our parents were not elected officials or political operatives our dad was a construction worker & mom sometimes made cakes to help supplement our income. I wasn’t endorsed or supported by ANY establishment Dems. I was told the seat “belonged” to Mrs.Cajero-Bedford because it was a family legacy and I would never win. So I worked hard, knocked on thousands of doors, raised 80k, and WON. Don’t EVER let anyone tell you that someone owns a seat or that it needs to go to them because of their parents. That’s not democratic.”

Candidate backgrounds:

Adelita Grijalva(D), who currently serves on the Pima County Board of Supervisors, officially announced her candidacy to succeed her father. She posted over twenty notable endorsements from elected officials in her official announcement.  She stated, “I am running for Congress because Southern Arizona deserves bold leadership that will fight for working families and stand up to Donald Trump.”

Daniel Hernández Jr. (D), a former Arizona state representative, first gained national recognition for his life-saving actions during the 2011 Tucson shooting involving Representative Gabrielle Giffords. Now, positioning himself as a grassroots candidate, Hernández has reported raising over $200,000 in the initial week of his campaign, indicating a potentially costly race ahead.

Jorge Rivas (R), a restaurant owner from Yuma, has filed paperwork indicating his candidacy. Rivas aims to leverage his local business connections to address economic development and advocate for small businesses within the district. Rivas faced backlash and threats to his restaurant after attending a Trump rally in 2020.  Despite the backlash, they stood by their support, and Trump later boosted their business with a supportive tweet.

Daniel Butierez (R), a painting contractor and the Republican nominee for the district in 2024, is making another bid for the seat. Butierez is a third-generation Arizonan who lives in the Tucson area. He is running as the change candidate and gained the Trump endorsement in 2024.  He garnered 99,057 votes in the heavily Democrat district.