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The race is generally considered to be a tossup given the state’s nearly even partisan lean; however, most polls and ratings have Gallego as the narrow favorite to win.

Arizona was once considered a Republican stronghold, but has become a swing state. As of May 2024, Democrats control the governorship and the state’s other U.S. Senate seat, while Republicans control both houses of the Arizona State Legislature and a 6-3 majority of Arizona’s U.S. House’s delegation.[6]Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump won Arizona by 3.5% in 2016, while Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden prevailed by 0.3% in 2020.

Source: Wikipedia

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Kari Lake

Ruben Gallego

Issues

Ruben Gallego

Source: Campaign Site

Abortion

Abortion is a fundamental right—backed by half a century of legal precedent and supported by the vast majority of Arizonans. Today, as a conservative Supreme Court majority and far-right extremists wage war on women’s rights, Ruben is proud to defend the right to choose in Congress on behalf of Arizonans.

Following the devastating Dobbs v. Jackson decision, Ruben voted for legislation to guarantee the legal right to travel across state lines to obtain an abortion and unequivocally supported the right to access contraception.

In the House, he co-sponsored the Women’s Health Protection Act and the My Body, My Data Act, which protect women’s health care providers and sensitive medical data, respectively, because he knows that extremists would use a woman’s health history to put her employment, benefits, and personal safety at risk if given the opportunity.
As your Senator, Ruben will continue to champion the right to choose—starting by waiving the filibuster to codify Roe v. Wade.

Arizona Families

A Marine through and through, Ruben has never backed down from a fight—especially when it comes to fighting for Arizona families. A father of two, Ruben has always been a staunch supporter of the child tax credit, which provides a much needed tax-break for everyday Arizona families. In Congress, he introduced the Universal Full- Day Kindergarten Act to ensure every child has access to high-quality, full- day kindergarten. He’s also championed lower health care costs, including prescription drug reform to make sure Arizona families can always access high quality health care. He has been a vocal advocate for making housing more affordable  — knowing that the everyday Arizona family can no longer afford the average Arizona home — and pushed Congress to bring home the federal resources needed to build more of it.

As Arizona continues to grow, Ruben is working to ensure opportunities for our families to grow with it.

Economy

Wall Street bankers and big corporations are getting richer every year, while the everyday folks who make up the backbone of our economy are still being squeezed. Ruben is fighting to build an economy that works for everyone, and makes life affordable for hard-working families.

That starts with lowering costs and empowering workers. In the Senate, Ruben will lead the charge to protect and expand workers’ right to organize and collectively bargain. Ruben knows the dignity of work and understands wages must keep up with the cost of living. That’s why he will fight to raise the minimum wage to a living wage of at least $15/hour, a common sense policy that is both widely supported by Arizonans and absolutely necessary for hardworking families to get by.

Ruben also wants to bring more high-paying jobs to Arizona. That is why he was proud to vote for the CHIPS and Science Act, which is already bringing thousands of semiconductor manufacturing jobs to our state. And he supports small businesses. He has consistently advocated for increased funding for the Community Development Financial Institution Fund to support growth in underserved communities, and he successfully secured an increase in the standard mileage deduction rate to lower gas costs for small businesses and the self-employed.

But Ruben also knows that we need to end the system of tax loopholes and exorbitant giveaways for the rich. It is inexcusable that billionaires and corporations continuously exploit our tax code — Ruben is committed to making sure they pay their fair share

Education

Having grown up poor, Ruben knows firsthand that education can change lives. In Congress, he is working to provide all kids with the same transformative educational opportunities.

Ruben is leading the charge to address the teacher shortage crisis; in 2022, he introduced the Teachers LEAD Act to support teachers and improve retention. Arizona has the highest teacher turnover rate in the country, and Ruben knows that in order to invest in our students, we must invest in our educators.

When it comes to expanding access to education from early childhood all the way through college, Ruben has been a tireless advocate, fighting for universal full-day kindergarten, expanded Child Care Development Block Grant funding, increased resources to public schools, and affordable higher education for all students.

For Ruben, this fight is personal. With a son in elementary school and a young daughter, Ruben wants his own children to grow up with strong public schools, career and technical training options, and affordable higher education—and in the Senate, he will push for every Arizona child’s right to the same.

Environment & Climate Change

It’s a fact: the climate is changing and we need to act. That’s why Ruben has made environmental issues a top priority. In Congress, Ruben voted in favor of the Inflation Reduction Act: by far the largest climate investment in the history of the United States. The IRA invests in cheaper, more sustainable energy, and will bring thousands of jobs to our state.

Ruben is also a leader in preserving Arizona’s public lands. He has fought time and again to protect areas like the Grand Canyon from industry exploitation. Ruben wants every community to be able to enjoy Arizona’s natural resources and natural beauty, whether through championing partnerships with Tribal governments or working to commemorate César Chávez with a National Historic Park in Phoenix. With the passage of his Veterans in Parks Act, Ruben led a bipartisan push to expand access to national parks for our veterans and Gold Star families, giving them lifelong free access to enjoy our beautiful parks across the nation.

Our state’s magic lies in its magnificent natural beauty—from the depths of the Grand Canyon to the tip of Humphreys Peak. We need to protect our public lands and our environment for generations to come.

Health Care

Ruben knows that our healthcare system is broken. Health care is a human right, and in the wealthiest nation on the planet, it is unacceptable that high-quality, comprehensive health care is not accessible for all Arizonans.

Ruben has long been a champion for improving health care access for families. He is an unwavering supporter of Medicaid expansion, and he stood up to Republican attempts to gut Arizona’s Medicaid program and dismantle the Affordable Care Act time and again.

For seniors, Ruben was proud to pass lower prescription drug prices as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. He will continue to stand up to any attempt to privatize or cut Medicare on behalf of the 1.45 million Arizonans who rely on it—and he will fight every day to expand Medicare benefits.

In Congress, Ruben has led the fight to lower health care costs—including prescription drug reform—to make sure Arizona families can always access high quality health care. And as a Senator, he will not stop until every Arizonan has access to high quality health care.

Immigration

As the proud son of immigrants, Ruben knows that for millions of Arizonans, immigration is not just a political issue, but a personal one, as our border communities benefit every day from sustained economic and cultural exchange.

But while our border communities are not the war zones that news stations often portray them as, they are facing a serious crisis. We need smart ways to keep our border secure, allow for a prosperous cross-border economy, reform a broken immigration system, and stop the flow of fentanyl into our communities.

Ruben has been on the forefront of sensible, comprehensive immigration reform in Congress, backing several bills that passed in the House but were held up in the Senate due to the filibuster. Over the years, Ruben has consistently voted for funding to hire and deploy thousands more border patrol agents, secure the border and ports of entry—and successfully advocated for increased resources for our border communities. In addition, he has introduced the Higher Education Dream Act, co-sponsored the Veteran Service Recognition Act and spoken out against extremist right-wing policies that separated migrant children from their families.

In the Senate, he will continue to champion these reforms, and lead the way to a better immigration system for all.

Inflation

The inflation crisis is squeezing Arizona’s small businesses and working families. It’s a devastating consequence of supply chain issues, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the conflict in Ukraine, but it is being exacerbated by corporations that price gouge Americans on basic necessities like food and gas.

In the House, Ruben has already made critical strides to curb inflation, like passing the Inflation Reduction Act, which lowered the costs of essentials like prescription drugs and health care; investing in clean energy; and making sure that billion-dollar corporations pay their fair share in taxes.

He has also taken a stand against corporate price gouging with the Lower Food and Fuel Costs Act, a package of bipartisan bills to lower prices and save Arizonans money at grocery stores and the gas pump.

LGBTQ+

From speaking out against Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell while in the Marines to leading the fight against the Prop 107 same-sex marriage ban in Arizona, to now serving as Vice Chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, Ruben has always and will continue to fight for the LGBTQ+ community.

Ruben is an active supporter of the Equality Act, which outlaws discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in housing, banking, jury selection, transportation, and public accommodations. His commitment extends to veterans, ensuring those discharged due to their sexual orientation or gender identity receive the VA benefits they’ve earned.

Discrimination has no place in our society and Ruben is unwaveringly committed to fostering a future where everyone can live authentically and without fear. While substantial progress has been made, the fight for equality is far from over.

National Security

Protecting Arizonans from threats—foreign and domestic—remains one of Ruben’s top priorities in Congress. As a veteran and the highest-ranking Latino on the House Armed Services Committee, Ruben always puts our service members first. That means working tirelessly to ensure that members of the military are never again sent into harm’s way without a plan for winning the fight and caring for them when they return home.

As a national security leader and former Chairman of the Intelligence and Special Operations Subcommittee, Ruben plays a pivotal role in overseeing the operations and priorities of our special forces and intelligence community. And as the co-chair of the House Baltic Caucus, Ruben has been an unapologetic advocate for deterring Russian aggression in Europe.

Ruben knows that our adversaries, including China, Russia, and Iran, are trying every day to threaten the safety of Arizona families. But as Ruben has said throughout Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, America has what it takes to be a responsible leader on the world stage and stand up to enemies of democracy. Through Arizona’s military communities, innovative manufacturing, world-class universities, and our people, he believes that Arizona can be at the forefront of that mission.

Protecting Arizona’s Water

For every Arizonan looking toward the future, water is a top priority. As our state gets hotter and drier with each passing year, Ruben is leading efforts to combat excess urban heat and find solutions to ensure our state has enough water.

To that end, he has introduced federal legislation to keep foreign corporations and governments like Saudi Arabia from using excess water in drought-stricken states like Arizona. In 2022, he also introduced the Excess Urban Heat Mitigation Bill, which directs funds to climate resiliency in major cities. Ruben recognizes that 21st century water problems require 21st century solutions, which is why he introduced a bill to support and fund emerging water conservation technologies.

To protect our public lands and water, he co-authored the 30×30 Initiative, a comprehensive plan to conserve 30% of our global lands and oceans by the year 2030. And he successfully advocated for permanent authorization and funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), a cornerstone public land program that protects critical drinking water sources across the country.

Ruben knows that a safe and healthy future for our families depends on sustainable water access. He’ll fight for that access as Arizona’s next Senator.

Tribal Communities

As the former Chair and a current member of the Subcommittee for Indian and Insular Affairs, Ruben is a passionate voice for Arizona’s tribes in Congress.

He has worked tirelessly to improve access to quality healthcare for tribal communities. He wrote the Coverage for Urban Indian Health Providers Act to insure Urban Indian Organizations (UIOs), and the Urban Indian Health Facilities Improvement Act, to support their infrastructure – successfully securing votes to sign both bills into law. He was a leader in the push for advanced funding for Urban Indian Health Organizations and the Indian Health Service to protect Indian Country from future government shutdowns.

Ruben is committed to helping tribal communities protect themselves, including by addressing the crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW). He led a bipartisan effort to have the government’s top watchdog align federal, state, and tribal agencies to address MMIW cases and held the first congressional hearing on the crisis. He also works to improve tribal law enforcement through his bill, the BADGES in Native Communities Act, to increase coordination between federal, state, and tribal law enforcement.

Ruben knows that too many Native Americans in rural areas, including tribal lands, often lack access to vital resources – and he’s made progress to close that gap. Ruben’s PAVA Program Inclusion Act improves access to the ballot for Native Americans with disabilities living in the four corners region. He also successfully advocated for the inclusion of robust broadband deployment for Indian Country in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and he wants to do even more to expand broadband on tribal lands through his Bridging the Tribal Digital Divide Act.

Veterans

Ruben understands what it means to be an American veteran—he is one. After coming home from fighting in Iraq, where he was an infantryman in one of the hardest hit units of the war, Ruben experienced firsthand the need for better financial, medical, and social support to meet veteran community needs. We must continue to honor those who sacrifice the most, even and especially when they return home.

As a former member of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee in Congress, Ruben has vocally supported programs to get veterans the housing, education, economic opportunity, and mental and physical health care they deserve. From the historic Honoring Our PACT Act which will provide benefits to veterans exposed to toxic burn pits, to his Restore Veterans’ Compensation Act which will allow veterans to keep their separation pay should they qualify for VA disability, Ruben remains committed to our veterans in Arizona and across the country.

As a veteran who has struggled with PTSD, he knows how important the VA is to Arizona veterans, but only if it works how it’s supposed to. He has introduced legislation to improve VA oversight, including patient care data and public records requests, so the veteran community and Congress know how to improve the VA for those who served.

The brave men and women who have served in uniform—and their families, who are too often forgotten or ignored—put their lives on the line to defend our freedom. Ruben will continue to be their champion and voice in the Senate.

Voting Rights and Democracy

Ruben was on the House floor on January 6th and saw the violent assault on our democracy firsthand. Extremist GOP legislators in Arizona and across the country are actively suppressing the vote and attempting to overturn the results of free and fair elections—disenfranchising millions of Americans in the process. American democracy is at an inflection point, and we need leaders who understand what we’re up against.

As a combat veteran, Ruben defended democracy abroad; and as a Congressman, he works to defend democracy at home. He has been a vocal supporter of the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act, key measures to protect the right to vote. Both bills passed the House but stalled in the Senate when senators failed to waive the filibuster to protect the constitutional rights of Arizonans.

When elected, Ruben plans to finish the job and work with his colleagues to codify the bills into law, finally fortifying our sacred right to vote once and for all.

Kari Lake

Source: Campaign Site

10 Point Plan to Secure the Border

According to data from the Border Patrol, almost one in every fifty people now in the United States has come here illegally under Joe Biden and the Democrats. Pew reports that, worldwide, over 160 million people still want to migrate to the United States. Biden has hung out the welcome sign and thrown our border wide open. The result is unsustainable.

Fentanyl and meth, made with Chinese chemicals and produced in Mexican factories, are destroying our cities, ruining our quality of life, and leaving a vast trail of bodies in their wake. Crime is exploding. Housing, already in short supply and desperately needed by the millions of Americans living on our streets, is being given – for free, with no end date – to people who just arrived instead. American workers are having their wages undercut and opportunities for advancement snapped up by never-ending waves of new arrivals. Our border towns and states are overwhelmed. Even far-left New Yorkers can no longer hide from the negative impacts of Democrat policies that are putting America and Americans last.

When President Donald Trump took office, the path to securing our border and protecting American families and workers was relatively straightforward: build the wall, make it clear to the people of the world that attempting to cross illegally would not result in their getting to stay here, and enforce the laws we have on the books. That approach worked, generating the biggest reduction in illegal border crossings in history. Under Biden and the Democrats, however, the problem has exploded.

Kari Lake is committed to providing our Border Patrol agents with the tools and resources to fully secure our border and protect American families, including:

• Finishing the wall. If the wall didn’t work, Biden wouldn’t have welded the doors open.
• Enhancing technological surveillance and monitoring to assist Border Patrol with interceptions.
• Enforcing the laws we already have on the books.

These first three steps were working before Joe Biden took office. Unfortunately, Biden’s total refusal to enforce the law has made the situation more complex, and Kari supports additional legislative action to take on the international criminal cartels orchestrating the flood at our border, address the overflow of people now in the country illegally, and prevent future waves of uncontrolled mass migration:

• Remove the provision which allows endemic crime in a person’s country of origin to qualify them for asylum. Many of the U.S.’s largest, Democrat-run cities have violent crime rates similar to – in some cases higher than – those in the countries people are leaving to come here. This is the primary condition being cited by asylum seekers, removing it will automatically disqualify a majority of applicants.
• Require the automatic, immediate deportation of individuals caught crossing the border outside of official ports of entry. Further, individuals caught crossing the border outside of a port of entry will be permanently banned from entry into the U.S.
• Hire hundreds – thousands, if necessary – of new judges to hear asylum claims and clear the enormous backlog of cases that have stacked up under Biden and the Democrats.
• Build additional facilities on the border to house claimants until their cases can be heard so that those who claims are not upheld can be immediately deported.
• Expand and enforce E-Verify, including increased workplace enforcement, to ensure that people who have been erroneously let in under Biden cannot remain here indefinitely by simply avoiding their court dates as they are now.
• Withhold foreign aid to countries that do not actively assist U.S. agencies in preventing the uncontrolled flow of illegal migration.
• Provide personnel and material assistance to other nations who are willing to tackle violent, organized crime and take on the international criminal cartels on their own territory.

Water for the West

While Mother Nature has given us a short reprieve from the water woes of the Western United States, the underlying problem of having too many people reliant on the Colorado River basin isn’t going away, it’s accelerating. Conservation and smart water management are essential, and can help bridge a gap to the future, but long-term the need to augment fresh water supplies for Western states must be a priority for our elected officials. All options must be on the table.

As your Senator, Kari Lake will make the development and construction of a system to deliver a new source of fresh water to Arizona and the West one of her major priorities. Kari knows there are multiple options that need to be explored, and the time to do so is now.

First, we need to form an engineering working group in partnership with the states, U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation, Bureau of Land Management, and other appropriate agencies to examine engineering possibilities and challenges for each of the various options, to include desalination, river pipelining, and any other viable options to increase fresh water supply and availability throughout the Mountain West and Southwest.

Second, federal funds need to be identified and deployed to construct both the major delivery systems, and to assist rural communities in rebuilding local water delivery systems so that – as much as possible – we are able to get these communities transferred over from groundwater sourcing to these new systems, preserving our natural environment and the water tables that feed streams and rivers.

Further, Kari Lake believes and would seek a formal federal declaration that a new water delivery system for Western states is a matter of national and economic security, and as such should be exempted from the extremely lengthy environmental review processes and legal challenges which are used to derail and drive up the cost of major infrastructure projects.

In the meantime, Kari will work with existing stakeholders to shield Arizona farmers, ranchers, and citizens from unnecessary cuts while protecting the long-term condition and viability of the Colorado River Basin as an unmatched resource, recreational, and environmental asset for generations to come.

Make America Energy Dominant

Under President Trump, America was a net energy exporter. Now Democrats are waging a war on cheap, plentiful American energy. Utility rates are exploding. Gas prices are through the roof. Families are suffering. The policies of the radical left are taking a toll we simply can’t afford. There is no good reason for it. America is blessed with some of the biggest and most accessible energy reserves on the planet, but Democrats don’t want us to benefit from them.

We can all agree that we want clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. Less pollution is better than more pollution. But waging a war on clean-burning oil and natural gas is counterproductive and unrealistic. America’s emissions of greenhouse gasses have been dropping steadily for over 20 years. The continued transition from coal to natural gas will generate additional reductions in the coming years.

Long-term, our energy future will come from new, safe, and clean nuclear and reactor technologies. Clean, plentiful natural gas and oil are the bridges to that future. Kari Lake will vote to open our oil reserves to exploration, cut prices at the pump and on your utility bill, and expand exports once again.

Cut Inflation & Reduce the Deficit

The federal government is spending money it doesn’t have, papering over a now more than $1.5 trillion annual deficit by printing more of it. That’s what causes inflation, why Americans are struggling just to afford everyday necessities. Kari Lake will cut spending, reduce bureaucracy, and free American workers to grow our economy: because increasing our total economic output is the surest way to tame inflation now, and in the future.

Markets around the world are increasingly concerned about the stability of the dollar and our growing debt. Right now, countries and investors around the world are financing our overspending by continuing to buy T-Bills, but they’re not going to keep buying them if we continue on this reckless course to national bankruptcy. Kari will work to limit the growth of the federal budget until we return to the point where annual tax revenues are higher than what we’re spending. Once we do that, we can slowly pay off our debt and, over time, free more revenue to directly benefit American citizens.

Homelessness and Quality of Life

The exploding epidemic of drug and mental-illness fueled homelessness is destroying the quality of life for residents in our biggest cities. It is neither compassionate or caring to leave people suffering from severe mental illness and significant drug addictions on the streets. Addressing chronic street homelessness was a major focus of Kari Lake’s campaign for Governor, and she remains committed to tackling this problem head-on for the good of all. As your Senator, Kari Lake will fully support President Trump’s plan to get homeless individuals off the street and in to treatment, by:

• Banning urban camping.
• Providing both federal lands and funding for controlled camping and shelter facilities.
• Rebuilding a national system of in-patient treatment centers, halfway houses, and assisted-living facilities for drug and mental health treatment of the most seriously addicted and mentally-deranged individuals to get the treatment they need and get back on a path to wellness.
• Refocus federal policy to lead with services and treatment, and end federal support for so-called “harm reduction” policies that have failed and are only enabling chronic street homelessness and drug use as a lifestyle.

Kari Lake believes we have to stop allowing a tiny percentage of our population to ruin the quality of life for hard-working, productive citizens and their families. No one should have to navigate a hellscape of zombie drug users, discarded needles, public lewdness, and feces just to walk down the sidewalk. Families should be able to take their kids to our parks and recreational areas without fear. Law and order must be returned to our streets.

Education

For decades, American education was the envy of the world. We had the best schools at every level. It’s time to return to that standard. Kari Lake is committed to ensuring our schools deliver a truly world-class education with a strong fundamental basis in mathematics, science, and language. One way we can do that, is by cutting back the bureaucratic interference by federal officials in our local schools.

Eliminate Annual Testing Requirements: 

No more teaching to the test.Endless testing requirements are straining classrooms and forcing teachers to spend weeks, even months, every year teaching to the test. It’s not working. The tests are routinely gamed and dumbed down by educational bureaucrats, and students are subjected to huge amounts of test prep that isn’t helping them prepare for their futures. Enough. Kari Lake supports ending the annual testing requirements in favor of having students take the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) once every four years. The NAEP is internationally benchmarked, is the gold-standard of educational assessments, and is only administered in the 4^th, 8^th, and 12^th grades.

Quick Launch Vouchers: 

Kari’s innovative idea is to provide $5,000 vouchers for every high school graduate in the country who wants to attend either a community college, trade school, or certificate program. Too many kids are graduating college with degrees that cost a fortune, and don’t set them up for long term economic success. At the same time, we have a huge deficit in highly skilled workers with trade and certificate degrees. $5,000 is enough to cover the first year of tuition at most community colleges and trade programs.

Reduce Federal Bureaucracy: 

Cut the reporting requirements and return to trusting our states and local school districts to ensure the achievement and success of our kids. Kari Lake will vote to cut federal bureaucracy and give the savings directly to local schools via block grants.

Abortion

Kari Lake is the only mother in this race. Kari believes life is priceless, and that having children is the greatest blessing any woman can ever experience. Kari wants to do everything she can to help women choose life, to choose to bring that blessing into their own existence. She also recognizes that a majority of people in this country and in the State of Arizona hold the view that abortion should be legal with restrictions against late-term and partial-birth abortions. Arizona’s law currently allows abortions up to 15 weeks, and Kari does not support a federal ban on abortion. Abortion is, as the courts decided, an issue for states to decide, not the federal government.

Kari’s focus will be on ensuring that young women facing the challenges of motherhood have all the support they need to choose life, including quality pre-natal care, parenting classes, and financial support where necessary. Kari believes in making sure that women know they have a real choice and not be pushed into an abortion they may well later regret because, when they sought help, they weren’t given any other options. Lots of women come to regret having gotten an abortion, very few regret having a child.