The AZ Political Podcast

Warren Petersen, State Senate President and GOP candidate for AZ Attorney General

Republican Warren Petersen believes the Attorney General’s Office (which he hopes to be elected to on Nov. 3) “should be focused on public safety rather than politics.” And he believes a political focus is what’s motivated incumbent Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes to sue the Trump Administration more than two dozen times.

That’s not to say that Petersen, my guest on the AZ Political Podcast, would be above suing the federal government if he’s elected. He just thinks it should be done with more prudence — and less partisanship.

In fact, Petersen, who currently serves as state Senate president, says he sees the AG’s office as “non-partisan.” And the decision to engage will be based on whether a federal administration “is abiding by the law or not.”

In contrast to his aspirational office, Petersen says his current office and legislative leadership position is partisan but believes that experience would serve him in a “non-partisan” role. That’s because it forced him to compromise with Democrats in order to get any legislation passed — including the state budget.

While we’re on the topic of the state budget, Petersen said that while he has the support of seven different law enforcement associations (and says Mayes has none), I passed along the displeasure I’ve heard from state troopers over the meager amount within the budget for the Department of Public Safety (DPS).

Petersen told me he tried to get more money for DPS but “we put it on the Governor’s desk, and she vetoed it.” I’m guessing that’s the side of compromise that Petersen will not miss. (By the way, he does have the endorsement of the State Troopers Association.)

When asked if he would use the A.G.’s office to investigate the 2020 election, Petersen asked why Democrats are “so obsessed with 2020?” (Something Republicans could be asked too.) And claimed he’s never said Joe Biden didn’t win in 2020 — but he did say, that if elected, he’d focus on “election integrity.”

As for right now, Warren Petersen is focused on the 2026 election — trying to win it.

00:21:45

Aug 13, 2026 6:37 PM

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Sine Kerr, candidate for Lieutenant Governor and running mate to Andy Biggs

Former state senator Sine Kerr, Republican Andy Biggs’ pick for lieutenant governor on Arizona’s gubernatorial ballot this fall, says, instead of criticizing her on water issues, Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs should be pointing the finger at herself.

Kerr told me on the AZ Political Podcast that Hobbs “too little, too late” water policy means we’ll be getting too little water from the Colorado River to meet the needs of a growing Arizona — a state Kerr has lived in since she was 3 years old (and whose family has farmed in for almost as long).

The old saying, "whiskey is for drinking; water is for fighting," isn't about water pistols at pool parties — it's about the age-old tug-of-war over water in the West. And this fall, the fight over Colorado River water won’t just happen among the seven states that share it — it’ll also take place in the political ring of the governor’s race.

Kerr defends her decision to resign from the Governor’s Water Policy Council in 2023 by calling it a “sham of a council” that Hobbs hoped would produce policy of a “predetermined outcome.” She says that Hobbs put “radical environmental groups” that were anti-agricultural on the council — forcing Kerr, a former chair of the state Senate Natural Resources, Energy, and Water Committee, to quit.

We do talk more about water, but Kerr and I also talk about:

• The border and how cross-border labor affects agriculture

• Her family’s history (which included her mother crossing the border from Mexico)

• Whether gender is important in politics (we’ve had more women governors than any other state, after all)

• Data centers and their place in Arizona’s economy

• Her unusual first name (pronounced like “Tina,” by the way)

I hope you enjoy getting to know Sine Kerr, because whether you’re a fan of her politics or not, she will always have a place in Arizona political history as the first-ever lieutenant-governor nominee.

00:21:01

Aug 6, 2026 6:32 PM

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Sine Kerr, candidate for Lieutenant Governor and running mate to Andy Biggs

Former state senator Sine Kerr, Republican Andy Biggs’ pick for lieutenant governor on Arizona’s gubernatorial ballot this fall, says, instead of criticizing her on water issues, Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs should be pointing the finger at herself.

Kerr told me on the AZ Political Podcast that Hobbs “too little, too late” water policy means we’ll be getting too little water from the Colorado River to meet the needs of a growing Arizona — a state Kerr has lived in since she was 3 years old (and whose family has farmed in for almost as long).

The old saying, "whiskey is for drinking; water is for fighting," isn't about water pistols at pool parties — it's about the age-old tug-of-war over water in the West. And this fall, the fight over Colorado River water won’t just happen among the seven states that share it — it’ll also take place in the political ring of the governor’s race.

Kerr defends her decision to resign from the Governor’s Water Policy Council in 2023 by calling it a “sham of a council” that Hobbs hoped would produce policy of a “predetermined outcome.” She says that Hobbs put “radical environmental groups” that were anti-agricultural on the council — forcing Kerr, a former chair of the state Senate Natural Resources, Energy, and Water Committee, to quit.

We do talk more about water, but Kerr and I also talk about:

• The border and how cross-border labor affects agriculture

• Her family’s history (which included her mother crossing the border from Mexico)

• Whether gender is important in politics (we’ve had more women governors than any other state, after all)

• Data centers and their place in Arizona’s economy

• Her unusual first name (pronounced like “Tina,” by the way)

I hope you enjoy getting to know Sine Kerr, because whether you’re a fan of her politics or not, she will always have a place in Arizona political history as the first-ever lieutenant-governor nominee.

00:21:01

Aug 6, 2026 6:31 PM

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Dr. Terry Ruiz, democratic candidate for state superintendent of public instruction

As someone who started her career as a 7th grade math teacher, Dr. Terry Ruiz is hoping the numbers work in her favor in this November’s General Election for Superintendent of Public Instruction — when she’ll face state Treasurer Kimberly Yee, the Republican nominee.

The numbers certainly added up for Ruiz in the Democratic Primary Election: She beat Brett Newby, her challenger in that race, by nearly 60 percentage points and with almost twice as many votes.

Ruiz, my guest on this week’s AZ Political Podcast, is also hoping that she can make the numbers line up to increase spending on public education in Arizona.

And get the math a little more in line when it comes to how she feels money should be spent through Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA) program — but she didn’t express a desire to end ESAs. Instead, she says she just wants to “follow the rules.”

Interestingly, when prompted, she admitted the state superintendent has somewhat limited power to affect change. For instance, she can’t increase spending on Arizona schools — that’s the job of the Legislature.

She can’t pay teachers more — that’s something determined by the state budget and individual schools and districts.

And, she can’t really add staff to the Department of Education — but, she says, good administrators move staff into place to focus on the problems at hand and she sees overspending within the ESA program — and underspending on public education — as problems.

Her other priorities include setting up an office for rural and small schools; working on teacher retention and getting more certified teachers in classrooms; and, she wants to see Arizona’s 13 Career and Technical Education districts expand their programs.

As someone who is a product of Arizona’s K-12 and post-secondary educational systems — and as someone who has served within both those systems (including her last job as president of Glendale Community College), Terry Ruiz believes she’s not only up for the job of superintendent, but she also has the education under her belt to help do it.

00:29:42

Aug 4, 2026 4:0 AM

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Chuck Coughlin, president and CEO of High Ground Consulting

Even though the color of Arizona’s statewide offices were 100-percent ruby-red Republican at the completion of 2010’s election cycle, could 2016 see a complete color change to through-and-through blue?

That’s a possibility laid out by political consultant Chuck Coughlin, my guest this week on the AZ Political Podcast. The fact that Chuck — who oversaw Republican Gov. Jan Brewer’s 2010 win (the start of that four-year run of Republican rule) — makes this prospect of a bounty of blue all the more intriguing.

It all boils down to whether Democratic disdain for Donald Trump drives them to the polls. And whether enough independents come along for a ride in their blue car.

On the “Primary Postmortem/Preview and Pivot to the General Election” edition of the AZ Political Podcast, Chuck does make a prediction: incumbent Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs will refuse to debate her Republican opponent, Andy Biggs, this fall — a repeat nonperformance of 2022 when she refused to debate Republican Kari Lake.

We also take a look at Arizona’s high-profile congressional races for 2026: wondering how the national Democratic party failed so miserably with its backing of losing primary candidate Marlene Galán-Woods in the 1st Congressional District (CD1) and asking if Amish Shah, the CD1 Democratic winner, can rise to the occasion this time and beat Republican Jay Feely? (That's something he failed to do against Republican David Schweikert in 2024.)

In the southeast Valley’s 5th Congressional District (CD5), we ponder if the Republican winner, former Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, will continue to “give the Heisman” to the Press when they press him on his sexual misconduct allegations? Is CD5 so red that Democrat Elizabeth Lee doesn’t stand a snowball’s chance in a Gilbert summer — leading to Lamb never having to talk about his alleged history of dirty talk?

Get caught up on what the big races will be on the AZ Political Podcast. Then buckle up and, please, keep your hands inside the ride at all times — because Arizona’s 2026 midterm elections will be a wild ride.

00:27:52

Jul 23, 2026 9:9 PM

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Stan Barnes, Copper State Consulting, & Stacey Pearson, co founder of Lumen Strategies

Could something that was once unthinkable: Republican Rep. Andy Bigg’s 5th Congressional District flipping to Democratic control, become a reality? And could it come true due to Republican infighting?

With 2026’s Primary Election fast approaching (it’s this Tuesday, July 21), Stacy and Stan, my favorite politically polar-opposite tactician twosome, join me for a special A-Z Political Podcast Primary Preview.

I get Democratic political consultant Stacy Pearson of Lumen Strategies and Republican strategist Stan Barnes of Copper State Consulting to make a few predictions and give their insight into the races (realistically) still being run.

This is a fascinating question: what effect will Republican Daniel Keenan’s ad campaign have in 5th Congressional District’s primary? Will it help him make inroads on the GOP's primary frontrunner, former Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb?

Will Keenan’s ubiquitous ads (featuring sexual misconduct allegations against Lamb) result in a Keenen win — or simply leave Lamb limping so badly into the General Election that the southeast Valley district flips Democrat?

That might have been the most “out there” prediction of the podcast, but there are plenty of other riveting races we look at, including:

• The Democratic and Republican primary races in the northeast Valley’s 1st Congressional District, where Democrats Amish Shah and Marlene Galán Woods and Republicans Jay Feely and Joseph Chaplik are battling it out in their respective primaries to replace David Schweikert in Congress.

• The Attorney General’s race — where former Democrat Rodney Glassman is trying to secure the GOP nomination by throwing a lot of shade on state Senate President Warren Petersen hoping to face Democrat Kris Mayes in the fall.

• The race for state superintendent of schools — where sitting supe Tom Horne is being “primaried” by fellow Republican (and current state treasurer) Kimberly Yee in a race that’s gotten a bit nasty.

Check out the AZ Political Podcast, so after the Primary you can give Stacy and Stan a bad time about what they got wrong — as long as you ignore my mistakes.

00:26:29

Jul 16, 2026 4:0 AM

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Andy Biggs, US representative and candidate for AZ Governor

Jim Sharpe sits down with Congressman Andy Biggs with less than two weeks to go until the primary election for Arizona governor. Biggs discusses his campaign strategy, the urgent need to combat Medicare and Medicaid fraud within the state's recovery industry and how he manages to balance a statewide campaign with his duties in D.C. He also shares his Day 1 vision for reaching across the aisle to work on unifying issues such as water conservation, power generation and data center regulations.

00:18:54

Jul 9, 2026 7:36 PM

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You can get answers by watching the debate on KTAR.com, but I’d suggest doing that after you watch the pre-game show: the AZ Political Podcast.

00:19:36

Jun 16, 2026 4:0 AM

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Stacey Pearson, co founder of Lumen Strategies

Will you get to decide if firing squads will be part of a list prisoners can choose from when they’re executed in Arizona? How do you feel about mail-in voting? Would you vote by mail to enshrine into the Arizona constitution the right to vote by mail?

Those are just a couple of the dozens of examples of what you could be voting on this year. That’s because Arizona is one of a handful of states where you get to be a quasi-legislator and partake in direct democracy by creating (or rejecting) laws in the voting booth.

On this week’s AZ Political Podcast, I get to talk with political consultant Stacy Pearson of Lumen Strategies not only about the ballot measures you could see this fall, but also the four types of ways they end up on ballots: two that are initiated by citizens and two that are referred by the Legislature to voters.

Stacy’s firm is engaged in trying to get an initiative called the “Constitutional Right to Early and Mail-in Voting Amendment” on Arizona’s ballot and there are some big hurdles to get there: State law requires that almost 384,000 signatures need to be gathered (and tens of thousands of extras to make up for those ineligible to sign) and submitted by July 2. And there are potential legal challenges to the signatures as well as challenges to the wording of the initiative.

Whew! It takes a lot of initiative to get an initiative in front of voters.

We also discuss what happens when two opposing ballot measures pass; how it’s possible for two similar ballot measures to split the vote and both fail; and the electoral track record of ballot measures.

Initiatives and referendums make for fascinating politics because it’s voters making government “of the people” and “by the people” by bringing “power to the people” to create law.