Arizona state Rep. Melody Hernandez, a Democrat, will not run for reelection, adding to the struggle Democrats will face to gain control of the Arizona House of Representatives.
Hernandez, the Democratic whip, announced Tuesday she will not run for reelection in District 8. Her Maricopa County district, which was redrawn in 2020, is solidly blue. It included parts of Tempe, encompassing Arizona State University, as well as parts of Mesa, Phoenix, and Scottsdale.
“I’ve never shied away from being accountable. When it was brought to my attention this weekend that I had made mistakes impacting my ability to successfully run for election to the Senate in LD8, I knew the only right next step would be to take sole responsibility and to allow someone else step forward and lead,” Hernandez said in a statement posted on X. “I have therefore chosen to withdraw my candidacy for the position, but will complete my current term.”
Hernandez did not say what “mistakes” she made. However, conversations surrounding her mistake point to not gathering enough valid signatures to get on the ballot.
Hernandez was running for the Arizona State Senate in District 8 as state Sen. Juan Mendez, a Democrat, faces term limits. Mendez is running for the House in District 8. Hernandez was the only Democrat who filed for the primary election.
Now, Democrats will have to run a write-in candidate in the primary as the filing deadline passed on April 1. In this district, a write-in candidate would need to get around 400 votes, equivalent to the amount of signatures needed to be on the ballot. Hernandez is disqualified from running as a write-in candidate as Arizona law prevents anyone who unsuccessfully tried to get on the ballot from running as a write-in candidate.
So long as one Democrat wins a write-in vote here, there will be a Democratic candidate on the ballot. Arizona’s primary election is July 30, 2024.
“I’m confident LD8 will continue to have strong Democratic representation come 2025,” Hernandez said. “My focus is now on helping a Democratic write-in candidate for the LD8 Senate seat successfully cross the finish line, to help flip the legislature in November, and to finish strong as your State Representative before I transition into my next role.”
Arizona Democrats are looking to flip the legislature, where Republicans hold a slim majority in both chambers. In the wake of the Arizona Supreme Court ruling that an 1864 near-total ban on abortion is enforceable, Democrats are looking to boost momentum from abortion-rights proponents to vote blue.
“We have the local infrastructure in place to make sure that whoever wins the write-in primary will defeat any Republican who has the misfortune of running in our district,” Steven Jackson, District 8 chairman, said in a statement following Hernandez dropping out of the race.
The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee announced late last year it would spend $70,000 in Arizona’s legislative races to flip the legislature blue.
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“The Republican majority in both chambers is vulnerable,” DLCC interim President Heather Williams told the Arizona Mirror, noting that was only the “initial investment” and to expect more.
“Our goal of driving out Democrats, Democratic leaning Independents, and rational Republicans for our candidates at every level remains a top priority,” Jackson added in the statement. “This will not change that, and we are hopeful that the transition will help us run up the score on the path to victory for Democratic candidates across the state.”
