Democrat Adelita Grijalva wins special election for southern Arizona congressional seat

PHOENIX — Southern Arizona voters on Tuesday chose Adelita Grijalva to succeed her father, the late U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva, a progressive Democrat who represented the state for more than two decades in Congress.

She defeated Republican candidate Daniel Butierez to represent a district that stretches from Yuma to Tucson and hugs almost the entire length of Arizona’s border with Mexico. The decisive win — early returns showed Grijalva with more than double the number of votes as her Republican opponent — will make Grijalva the first Latina to represent Arizona in Congress.

The seat was one of two remaining vacancies in blue districts that Democrats needed to hold to avoid losing more ground to Republicans in the U.S. House.

Grijalva thanked voters late Tuesday in a post on X, saying they made history together. “Now, let’s get to work.”

Despite the name recognition that came with her father’s legacy, Adelita Grijalva said she was running on her own record. She voiced her support for limiting immigration enforcement operations at schools, hospitals and churches.

Butierez, who owns a painting company, made his political debut in 2024 with an unsuccessful run for the same seat. He campaigned again on border security and said addressing homelessness was his top priority.

Democrats enjoy a nearly 2-1 voter registration advantage over Republicans in the mostly Hispanic district. Most of the region has been represented by Democrats since Arizona first became a state in 1912.

Earlier Tuesday, family and friends of Grijalva gathered at a well-known events center in Tucson to await the results, with music and food. Speakers addressed the crowd in both English and Spanish.

Grijalva, who has served on local boards, won the Democratic primary with more than 60% of the vote, defeating a slate that included a former state lawmaker and a Gen Z digital strategist. Butierez won the GOP primary by a similar margin.

Grijalva will serve the final 15 months of her father’s term.

Grijalva’s victory improves Democrats’ chances of forcing a vote on making the Justice Department release case files on the sex trafficking investigation into the late Jeffrey Epstein, the Democratic National Committee said in a statement.