Arizona Democratic Party leaders celebrate election wins

Audio By Carbonatix

(The Center Square) – A gaggle of Democratic politicians, union leaders and progressive activists gathered to celebrate a victory six decades in the making on Tuesday morning.

The cadre of political insiders were gathered on the steps of the Arizona capitol to commemorate the Democrats’ first legislative trifecta in 60 years, with Gov. Katie Hobbs, Senate President-elect Priya Sundareshan and House Speaker-elect Oscar De Los Santos taking turns laying out the party’s goals for the new year.

But a Republican - current Senate Majority Leader John Kavanagh, who will be the minority leader next year - is warning voters may have buyers' remorse as policies are reversed.

For now, the mood was celebratory outside at the Capitol in Phoenix. De Los Santos, who at 32 will be the youngest Arizona House speaker in state history when the Legislature gavels in on Jan. 11, was the first to take to the lectern. He laid out the steps he’ll undertake to fulfill the will of the state’s voters, who gave the party its first legislative and executive branch trifecta since 1966.

“The Arizona House, I want to be clear, is the people's house,” De Los Santos said. “The power belongs to the people. To Arizonans, not the billionaires, not the corporations, and not the special interests.

“As the first Democrat in six years to serve as speaker of the Arizona House, I do not take this responsibility lightly. I know the people who sent us here are counting on us,” he added.

A long time coming

Both De Los Santos and the day’s other speakers hammered home just how long the party’s Election Day landslide had taken to achieve.

Hobbs, who defeated U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Gilbert, by 13.1%, discussed the Arizona Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which she helped launch when she got into the state House in 2011.

Hobbs, along with De Los Santos and Sundareshan, talked about how the party’s fundraising arm helped motivate generations of political candidates, eventually leading to the deep bench that helped them take 20 of the 30 seats in the Senate and 37 of the 60 seats in the House, with three that have yet to be called.

“When I got to the legislature in 2011, there were so few Democrats in the Senate caucus. We joked that the caucus could share one pizza,” Hobbs told the crowd Tuesday. “We're going to need a lot more.”

Sundareshan hit on a similar topic when she took to the stage on Tuesday, discussing how the party’s ground game helped them win big in 2026, but that they’ll have to keep at it if they want to stay in power long term.

“This is an extraordinary accomplishment that speaks to the strength of our candidates, the campaigns they built and the grassroots movements that have carried us across the finish line,” Sundareshan said.

Kavanaugh, the Republican Party's minority Leader in 2027 in the Senate, expressed his dismay with how the election turned out. 

The Fountain Hills senator also questioned whether Arizona voters will buy what the Democratic Party's selling in the new year, with the GOP ready to return to their longstanding majority status should that occur. 

"The Republicans are obviously disappointed and surprised by the results of this elections," Kavanaugh told The Center Square on Tuesday. "We're concerned that the limited government policies that we've put in place over the last decade will be eliminated by Democrats. We believe that giving the Democrats control of the legislative trifecta will give Arizona voters a case of buyer's remorse. 

"But if that happens, the Republicans will be around to pick up the pieces," Kavanagh said.

What comes next

On Tuesday, Sundareshan made sure to remind those in attendance that the party’s hard work didn’t end on Election Day.

Instead, the incoming Senate president from Tucson called on the 57 Democratic legislators in both chambers to do what voters elected them to do: Help bring down the cost of living and address the state’s long-term education and water needs.

“As exciting as this moment is, we know that winning an election is just the beginning,” Sundareshan said. “The real victory comes next in what we accomplish for the people of Arizona, because for the first time in decades, we have an opportunity to bring our government together around the priorities that actually matter to Arizona families.”

Those priorities include closing tax loopholes for the state’s corporations, while ensuring that Arizonans have access to quality public education and healthcare, Sundareshan said.

By doing that and continuing the work that Hobbs and the legislative campaign committee started in 2011, Democratic leadership will deliver governance that puts residents’ needs ahead of political gain, Sundareshan said.

“Arizona, our promise to you is that we will make the most of it,” Sundareshan said. “Let's get to work.”