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Arizona, State House, District 26

Arizona House of Representatives District 26
Current incumbentsIsela Blanc Democratic Party
Athena Salman Democratic Party

Arizona’s twenty-sixth state house district is represented by Democratic Representatives Isela Blanc and Athena Salman.

Arizona state representatives represent an average of 106,534 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 85,511 residents.

About the office

Members of the Arizona House of Representatives serve two-year terms with term limits, limiting representatives to four terms (a total of eight years). Arizona legislators assume office on the first day of the session after they are elected. Each regular session begins on the second Monday in January.

Qualifications

Article 4, Part 2, Section 2 of the Arizona Constitution states: "No person shall be a member of the Legislature unless he shall be a citizen of the United States at the time of his election, nor unless he shall be at least twenty-five years of age, and shall have been a resident of Arizona at least three years and of the county from which he is elected at least one year before his election."

Salaries

State legislators
SalaryPer diem
$24,000/year$35/day for legislators who live in Maricopa County; $60/day for legislators who live outside of Maricopa County.

Term limits

The Arizona legislature is one of 15 state legislatures with term limits. Voters enacted the Arizona Term Limits Act in 1992. That initiative said that Arizona senators are subject to term limits of no more than four two-year terms, or a total of eight years.

The first year that the term limits enacted in 1992 impacted the ability of incumbents to run for office was in 2000.

Vacancies

If there is a vacancy in the Arizona State Legislature, the Board of County Supervisors must select a replacement. The political party committee is involved in the appointment process only if the legislative district has thirty or more elected precinct committeemen.

If the legislative district has 30 or more elected precinct committeemen:

The secretary of state is required to contact the state party chairperson to give notice of the vacancy. The state chairperson must give notice of a meeting to fill the seat within three days of receiving notice.

The precinct committeemen must nominate three qualified electors as replacements. If the Legislature is in session, this must occur within five days. If the Legislature is out of session, the committeemen have 21 days to nominate potential replacements. Each elector must receive a majority of the committeemen to earn a nomination. The chair then forwards the three nominees to the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors appoints a nominee from the three names. If the committeemen do not submit a list of names within the allotted timeframe, the Board of Supervisors proceed with the vacancy as if the district had fewer than 30 elected precinct committeemen.

If the legislative district has fewer than 30 elected precinct committeemen:

The Board of County Supervisors appoints a panel of citizen supervisors within three business days of a vacancy occurring. That panel has seven business days to submit the name of three qualified electors of the same political party as the previous incumbent to the Board of Supervisors. Within five business days of receiving the list, the Board of Supervisors must select a replacement by a majority vote.

The person selected to fill the seat serves the remainder of the unfilled term.

Elections

2020

Elections for the office of Arizona House of Representatives will take place in 2020. The general election will be held on November 3, 2020. A primary is scheduled for August 4, 2020. The filing deadline is April 6, 2020.

2018

General election
General election for Arizona House of Representatives District 26 (2 seats)

Incumbent Athena Salman (D) and incumbent Isela Blanc (D) defeated Raymond Speakman (R) in the general election for Arizona House of Representatives District 26 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Athena Salman (D)
39.8
29,540

Isela Blanc (D)
37.8
28,039

Raymond Speakman (R)
22.5
16,676

Total votes: 74,255
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Arizona House of Representatives District 26 (2 seats)

Incumbent Athena Salman and incumbent Isela Blanc advanced from the Democratic primary for Arizona House of Representatives District 26 on August 28, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Athena Salman (D)
50.3
9,672

Isela Blanc (D)
49.7
9,545

Total votes: 19,217
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Arizona House of Representatives District 26 (2 seats)

Raymond Speakman advanced from the Republican primary for Arizona House of Representatives District 26 on August 28, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Raymond Speakman (R)
100
6,834

Total votes: 6,834
(100.00% precincts reporting)

2016

Elections for the Arizona House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 30, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 1, 2016. Incumbent Juan Mendez (D) did not seek re-election.

Athena Salman and Isela Blanc defeated Steven Adkins and Cara Trujillo in the Arizona House of Representatives District 26 general election.

Arizona House of Representatives, District 26 General Election, 2016

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Athena Salman 33.21% 28,038
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Isela Blanc 31.96% 26,981
Republican Steven Adkins 23.06% 19,469
Green Cara Trujillo 11.77% 9,941
Total Votes 84,429
Source: Arizona Secretary of State

Isela Blanc and Athena Salman defeated incumbent Celeste Plumlee and Michael Martinez in the Arizona House of Representatives District 26 Democratic Primary.

Arizona House of Representatives, District 26 Democratic Primary, 2016

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Isela Blanc 29.80% 4,648
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Athena Salman 32.10% 5,007
Democratic Celeste Plumlee Incumbent 21.00% 3,276
Democratic Michael Martinez 17.09% 2,666
Total Votes 15,597

Steven Adkins ran unopposed in the Arizona House of Representatives District 26 Republican Primary.

Arizona House of Representatives, District 26 Republican Primary, 2016

Party Candidate
Republican Green check mark transparent.png Steven Adkins (unopposed)

2014

Elections for the Arizona House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on August 26, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was May 28, 2014. Incumbents Juan Mendez and Andrew Sherwood were unopposed in the Democratic primary. James Roy was unopposed in the Republican primary. Mendez and Sherwood defeated Roy and Chris Will (L) in the general election.

Arizona House of Representatives District 26, General Election, 2014

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngAndrew Sherwood Incumbent 31.2% 13,584
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJuan Jose Mendez Incumbent 30.8% 13,413
Republican James Roy 25.5% 11,098
Libertarian Chris Will 12.4% 5,395
Total Votes 43,490

2012

Elections for the office of Arizona House of Representatives consisted of a primary election on August 28, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was May 30, 2012. Democrats Juan Mendez and Andrew Sherwood defeated Raymond Speakman and Mary Lou Taylor, Green Party candidate Haryaksha Gregor Knauer and Libertarian candidate Chris A.H. Will in the general election. Speakman and Taylor defeated Buckley Merrill and Jason Youn in the August 28 Republican primary.

Arizona House of Representatives, District 26, General Election, 2012

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJuan Mendez 28.2% 24,213
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngAndrew Sherwood 27.3% 23,481
Republican Mary Lou Taylor 19.5% 16,766
Republican Raymond D. Speakman 18.8% 16,153
Libertarian Chris Will 4% 3,480
Green Haryaksha Haryaksha Gregor Knauer 2.2% 1,872
Total Votes 85,965

Arizona House of Representatives, District 26 Republican Primary, 2012

Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngRaymond Speakman 30.7% 3,725
Green check mark transparent.pngMary Lou Taylor 29.8% 3,611
Jason Youn 26.4% 3,206
Buckley Merrill 13.1% 1,587
Total Votes 12,129

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2016, candidates for Arizona House of Representatives District 26 raised a total of $2,054,393. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $45,653 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, Arizona House of Representatives District 26

Year Amount Candidates Average
2016 $140,437 6 $23,406
2014 $121,394 4 $30,349
2012 $210,681 8 $26,335
2010 $232,377 4 $58,094
2008 $287,904 5 $57,581
2006 $287,657 5 $57,531
2004 $182,782 4 $45,696
2002 $188,171 5 $37,634
2000 $402,990 4 $100,748
Total $2,054,393 45 $45,653