PHOENIX – Katie Hobbs kicked off her 2026 re-election campaign with packed events across Tucson, Bisbee, Tempe, Phoenix, and Yuma, drawing hundreds of supporters and energizing Arizonans one year out from Election Day.
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13 News: Hobbs kicks off 2026 reelection campaign with Tucson rally
Payton May
November 2, 2025
- Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs held her first major campaign event since announcing her 2026 reelection bid, rallying more than 200 supporters in Tucson as part of her “Arizona First” tour.
- Hobbs was joined by local party officials, including former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords, U.S. Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva and Tohono O’odham Nation Chairman Verlon Jose at the weekend event.
- With over a year before the 2026 midterms, Gov. Hobbs currently faces three Republican opponents: U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, businesswoman Karrin Taylor Robson, and U.S. Rep. David Schweikert.
- Both Biggs and Robson share endorsements from President Donald Trump, who wrote “either one will never let you down” in a Truth Social post from April. Hobbs expressed concern about Trump’s potential influence in Arizona if one of them wins.
- “He wants someone who will do whatever he says and never push back. All three of my opponents fit this bill,” Hobbs said.
- Hobbs highlighted her accomplishments as governor, including passing a bipartisan budget that “puts families first.” She said the budget protects health care for Arizonans with disabilities, provides nearly 70,000 school children with meals, gave raises to state troopers and firefighters, and provides community college scholarships to working-class students.
- She also cited updating groundwater legislation as evidence of prioritizing Arizona families.
- Pat Carlson, a supporter at the rally said, “I’m so excited about having a governor who’s willing to represent the people and not somebody who is kowtowing to national interests.”
- Hobbs closed her remarks with confidence about the campaign ahead: “In every campaign I’ve run, I’ve been underestimated, but you know what, I’ve also never lost.”
Arizona Capitol Times: Hobbs hosts first reelection rally for ‘toughest race in the country’
Reagan Priest
November 2, 2025
- Gov. Katie Hobbs kicked off a weekend of campaigning by criticizing her Republican opponents for focusing more on Washington, D.C., than the Grand Canyon state at her “Arizona First” rally in Tucson.
- The governor officially launched her reelection campaign on Oct. 9 with endorsements from Arizona’s top Democratic officials, including U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego and U.S. Reps. Yassamin Ansari and Greg Stanton. She will head into 2026 unopposed on the Democratic side and with a warchest of more than $5 million.
- Hobbs’ campaign is leaning into the governor’s focus on state-level issues, while two of her opponents, Biggs and Schweikert, have spent over a decade serving Arizona at the federal level and the third, Robson, has no experience in elected office. During her remarks Saturday, Hobbs highlighted the difference between her role in the state budget process and the federal budget process as Congress is 31 days into a government shutdown and no closer to a deal to end it.
- “After negotiations with both parties, I signed a balanced, bipartisan budget that puts families first,” Hobbs said. “At the same time, politicians ran through a reckless, partisan budget and all of my opponents cheered it on.”
- Hobbs also touted her wins on groundwater legislation, funding for the Division of Developmental Disabilities, border security efforts and job creation in the technology sector.
KVOA: Gov. Katie Hobbs rallies in Tucson
November 3, 2025
- Reporter: Governor Katie Hobbs held her first campaign rally for reelection in Tucson on Saturday, part of her Arizona First Tour, as Arizona will once again be a battleground in the midterms.
- Reporter: Hobbs was joined by Congresswoman-elect Adelita Grijalva and former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Supporters gathered to welcome the governor at El Rio Neighborhood Center as she campaigns across the state this weekend.
- Reporter: She says she’s secured Arizona’s water rights and water future, created more affordable housing, and more jobs. Hobbs won her race in 2022 by just 17,000 votes.
- Gov. Katie Hobbs: “Everyone here owns a piece of this campaign. Elections are won in neighborhoods. They’re won in living rooms, at kitchen tables, and on the streets of every city and town here in our state.”
12 News: Gov. Katie Hobbs Hosts ‘Arizona First’ Rally
November 2, 2025
- Anchor: Speaking of Governor Hobbs — she’s already working her reelection tour, rallying supporters across the state.
- Gov. Katie Hobbs: “I know what it’s like to worry about keeping a roof over your head. And that’s why I wake up every single day fighting for Arizona families — making sure that opportunities are reaching every single corner of our state.”
- Reporter: After stopping in Tucson, Governor Hobbs held a rally here in Phoenix this afternoon. She talked about securing Arizona’s water future, protecting Medicaid, and making sure kids have meals at school.
- Reporter: She also promised to keep working to make Arizona more affordable — something voters told us is important to them.
- Voter: “It’s critical that our people get health care — and that it’s affordable.”
ABC15: Governor Katie Hobbs campaigns in Phoenix as reelection race heats up
Rachel Louise Just
November 2, 2025
- Governor Katie Hobbs officially hit the campaign trail this weekend in Arizona, chasing a second term in a tour that took her to Phoenix, Bisbee, and Tucson.
- Hobbs announced her reelection campaign last month, saying she wanted to steer away from divisive politics.
- It’s expected to be another long and contentious gubernatorial race in the Grand Canyon State. Hobbs promised in a speech to supporters at UA Local 469 in central Phoenix on Sunday that she would continue to work to address the root problems of issues Arizonans are facing, not just the symptoms.
- “With everyday costs constantly going up, I know firsthand the challenges that so many Arizona families are facing,” she said.
Yuma Sun: Yuman industry leaders discuss tariff impacts on economy with governor
Josh Bootzin
November 3, 2025
- Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs visited multiple Yuma locations on Monday and held a roundtable discussion at Cafecito with local leaders, business owners and farmers on how international tariffs are impacting the economy.
- “Yuma has specific impacts that are different from other parts of the state because of the emphasis on agriculture here, and what I heard today really reiterated that even one tariff on one thing affects so many different industries,” Hobbs said. “It’s a complicated puzzle, and the thing that keeps hitting home is the uncertainty. The uncertainty is harmful to the economy, it creates future economic uncertainty, and that’s bad for everyone.”
- In attendance for the roundtable were Arizona Democratic Party Chairwoman Charlene Fernandez, Yuma Deputy Mayor Carol Smith and Councilmember Karen Watts, Gowan Group CEO Juli Jessen, Dinsmore Farms owner Jonathan Dinsmore, T&P Farms President Jesus Tovar and Cafecito owner Travis Krizay.
- “(Hobbs) got to hear from the people themselves on what it’s like to own a business in this community, what it’s like to have a large business that does work outside of this community, what it’s like for our winter visitors and whether they’ll be coming back,” Fernandez said. “I think it’s critical for her to listen to us and hear us first-hand.”
- Throughout her Arizona First campaign tour, Hobbs said she has heard the frustration from consumers, businesses and representatives from various industries across the state on the uncertainty that has come with the Trump Administration’s “trade war.”
- She stated that she’s spoken to many Arizonans who claimed to have voted for Trump in 2024 because he promised to lower costs, and they’ve felt that he has not done what he promised.
- The discussion at the roundtable acknowledged that changes were due in how the United States approaches foreign trade, but multiple attendees criticized the fast-tracked implementation of tariffs with an apparent lack of a plan for the future.
- Farmers Dinsmore and Tovar spoke on the rising prices for farming equipment, forcing them to use tractors and other equipment for longer periods of time before investing in newer models.
- “The tariffs are terrible for the whole state,” Fernandez shared. “The uncertainty that’s happening is affecting everyone. The tariffs, whether they’re high or low, we just have to know where it lands.”
- “We’re doing what we can at the state level to lower costs, but I know there’s a lot of frustration, and I heard from folks here today on how it makes a lot of uncertainty for them in how they conduct their business,” Hobbs said.
- Krizay shared the first-hand effects of the tourism industry to his restaurant, stating that he was always able to rely on Yuma’s winter visitors to make up for shortcomings in the summer months, but he’s uncertain to what extent that will continue due to Canadian winter visitors possibly losing incentives to travel to the United States.
- Hobbs addressed the upcoming review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreements.
- “Arizona stands to gain or lose a lot in that, so we’re making sure we’re bringing the voices of agriculture and other businesses across Arizona that rely on cross-border trade to that conversation so we can benefit from the review of that agreement,” Hobbs said.
- The governor said she’s doing what she can to offer some relief for families that stand to lose healthcare or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food benefits.
- “I’ve been really clear on both the impacts of the federal government shutdown, as well as longer term impacts from cuts that were made in Washington’s partisan budget that Arizona doesn’t have the capacity to backfill some of those impacts,” Hobbs said. “We are doing everything we can to mitigate as much as possible… but I know it’s not enough.”
- “I think about Arizonans first every single day when I get out of bed,” Hobbs added. “It drives the decisions I make in the Governor’s Office. I’m not focused on politics, I’m focused on what’s right for Arizonans, and that’s, for me, what Arizona First means.”
KYMA: AZ Governor Addresses Trade War Impact
November 3, 2025
- Reporter: Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs made a stop in Yuma today, meeting with local farmers and small business owners to talk about how federal trade policies are driving up costs all across the state of Arizona.
- Reporter: Hobbs said tariffs have led to higher prices on everything from coffee beans to farming equipment, making it harder for small business owners and growers to stay afloat.
- Reporter: She was joined by Arizona Democratic Party Chair Charlene Fernández, who says the state needs leadership that listens to rural communities.
- Charlene Fernández: “The tariffs are terrible for the whole state. Yes, Yuma County — close to my heart, born and raised here — but when you go to Cochise County, you go to Santa Cruz County, you go to Mohave County, every corner of the state, the uncertainty that’s happening is affecting everyone. President Trump ran on costs being too high, and he’s not doing anything to make them lower.”
- Gov. Katie Hobbs: “My opponents in this race are cheering on this reckless trade war, and it’s hurting Arizona families.”
- Reporter: This was Hobbs’ last stop on her Arizona First Tour as she campaigns for re-election.
Telemundo: Gobernadora de Arizona de Visita
November 3, 2025
- Presentador: Y la gobernadora de Arizona, Katie Hobbs, visitó Yuma para reunirse con agricultores locales y dueños de pequeños negocios, y hablar sobre cómo las políticas comerciales federales están elevando los costos en todo el estado.
- Hobbs afirma que los aranceles han provocado un aumento en todos los precios de todo — desde los granos de café, hasta la maquinaria agrícola — lo que dificulta la supervivencia de las pequeñas empresas y los agricultores.
- La acompañó la presidenta del Partido Demócrata de Arizona, Charlene Fernández, quien declaró que el estado necesita un liderazgo que escuche a las comunidades rurales.
- Esta fue la última parada de Hobbs en su “Primera Gira por Arizona,” mientras hace campaña para su reelección.
KAWC: Hobbs in Yuma, talks SNAP cuts, businesses impacted by tariffs
Victor Calderón
November 4, 2025
- Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs was in Yuma on Monday. Gov. Hobbs is crossing the state on what she’s calling her Arizona First Tour.
- Hobbs formally announced last month that she is running for re-election in2026.
- In Yuma, the governor met with local elected officials, small business owners and ag leaders at Cafecito to discuss the impacts of higher costs for them.
- Jonathan Dinsmore owns and operates Dinsmore Farms in Yuma..
- “Right now, we’re just looking to make sure we take care of our ag employees, focusing heavily on our resources like our water and being able to look at and plan ahead for certain prices with fertilizers, and fuels,” Dinsmore said. “Machinery costs are difficult right now. Anything we can do to be able to work with our state legislators and our governor would be really helpful.”
- While in Yuma, Gov. Hobbs also visited the Amberly’s Place domestic violence shelter.
Yuma Sun: Gov. Hobbs tours Amberly’s Place during Yuma visit
James Gilbert
November 3, 2025
- Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs visited Amberly’s Place late Monday afternoon as part of a trip to Yuma, touring the region’s family advocacy center and learning more about the services provided to victims of abuse and violence.
- Amberly’s Place Executive Director Tori Bourguignon said the governor’s visit was an important opportunity to highlight the agency’s work and the challenges victims face.
- “Anytime we’re able to get our political leaders in the building to understand the work that we do and the victims that we serve, it’s a great opportunity,” Bourguignon said. “It’s an opportunity to educate and to help them understand why these services in every community across our state are essential.”
- During the tour, Bourguignon said she and Hobbs discussed the importance of trauma-informed care and the “one-stop shop” model that allows victims to access law enforcement, advocacy and legal services under one roof.
- “We talked about the importance of providing services at the time of need and the significance of the multidisciplinary team concept that allows us to really be victim-centered,” Bourguignon said. “We don’t send people across town to find help – everything they need is here.”
- Yuma Police Chief Thomas Garrity, who joined the tour, said the governor’s visit underscored how vital Amberly’s Place is to the community.
- “When we talk about domestic violence, it affects all walks of life,” Garrity said. “It’s important for the governor to see what they do here so that when we ask for help, she understands exactly what every advocate and partner does to make sure we can continue this work.”
- Garrity noted that Amberly’s Place serves not only residents of Yuma County but also victims from nearby tribal communities and even migrants who experience violence or trafficking.
- “We don’t care who you are – we just want to make sure you get the care you need so you can move forward in a better place than when you came here,” he said.
- Amberly’s Place provides crisis response and advocacy for victims of child abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault and elder abuse, serving as a hub for law enforcement, prosecutors and victim services agencies in Yuma County
