The Arizona State Capitol in Phoenix. Photo: David Jiang, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Democrats in Arizona won control of both legislative chambers and retained the governor's office, giving the party its first trifecta in the state since 1966, as Democrats made major gains nationwide in this week's midterm elections and took control of both chambers of Congress.
The Associated Press called enough legislative races to confirm that both chambers flipped on Friday. The news organisation calls races individually, and it can take several days after voting, depending on when election officials tally the votes and how close the elections are.
Six decades of Republican control ends
In Arizona, Republicans had held the House for 60 years and the Senate since the early 1990s. That dominance is now over. In the state Senate, Democrats hold 17 seats, giving them the majority over Republicans, with three seats still uncalled. In the House, Democrats also have the majority, holding 31 seats, with 13 seats still undecided.
Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs won re-election, defeating Republican Andy Biggs, and will now govern with a Democratic-controlled legislature for the first time. Oscar De Los Santos, the current Democratic House minority leader, is positioned to become the first Democratic speaker in approximately six decades.
In her first term, Hobbs vetoed more than 540 measures passed by the Republican-led Legislature, on policies including taxes, immigration and voting laws. With Democrats now holding both chambers, she will be able to advance her own agenda instead. After the results, Hobbs urged a focus on issues like water security and childhood education over partisan politics.
A wave beyond Arizona
Overall, Democrats took full control — both statehouse chambers and governors' offices — in at least six states where they previously shared power with Republicans. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, the election could produce the largest number of legislative seat and chamber changes between parties since 2010.
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 onto the Texas state Senate.
Democrats will also hold the governor's office in at least 28 states. Results are still pending in Alaska and Kansas. Arizona's election results are unofficial until local and state officials have tallied all ballots and certified them.
What a trifecta means for Arizona
A trifecta — control of the governor's office and both legislative chambers — gives Arizona Democrats the ability to pass laws without Republican votes for the first time in 60 years. The shift is a decisive rebuke of President Donald Trump's past two years in office, and it will reshape Arizona's political landscape from the state Capitol to Washington, D.C.
The Nov. 3 election results were a decisive rebuke, with voters delivering Democrats the state House, the state Senate and the governor's office in a single night. What Hobbs and the new Democratic majorities do with that power — on taxes, voting laws, immigration, water and education — will now be one of the most closely watched stories of the new political era.
Sources: The Associated Press; Fox 10 Phoenix; The Arizona Republic.