Tucson Politics

  Arizona Public Media debuted a new Friday roundtable program that's airing on TV and radio and streaming online.

  State Senator Brian Fernandez and his Republican challenger Michelle Altherr clashed over education spending, water use, housing and immigration policy during a debate Thursday moderated by Tucson Sentinel reporter Jim Nintzel.

  This summer was the hottest on record globally, making it even more likely that 2024 will surpass last year as the warmest year ever measured, and states in the Southwest baked in heat waves, with Phoenix surpassing 110 degrees 55 times this summer, tying a record set just last year.

  "Securing our border is too serious of a problem for ill-conceived political stunts, which I believe Prop. 314 to clearly be." — former Pima County Sheriff Mark Napier

  The CEOs of both Kroger and Albertsons testified in an Oregon federal court at the midpoint of a three-week hearing on the Federal Trade Commission's attempt to block a proposed merger between the grocery store chains.

  State Senator Brian Fernandez and his Republican challenger Michelle Altherr clashed over education spending, water use, housing and immigration policy during a debate Thursday moderated by Tucson Sentinel reporter Jim Nintzel.

  Election officials in Maricopa County announced that voters can expect to receive a two-page ballot, whether they vote early by mail or on Election Day.

  Crisis pregnancy centers have emerged as the latest frontier in the increasingly fraught battle over reproductive rights, as anti-abortion advocates have promoted the centers as an alternative for women seeking abortions.

  Over those few weeks after the 2020 presidential election, the lives of election workers fundamentally changed. Suddenly, they became the targets of angry mobs fueled by misinformation, and the threats weren’t isolated to the 2020 election..

  The state Senate candidates in Arizona's Legislative District 23 are set to meet in a Clean Elections debate Thursday.

  "By removing regulatory burdens, we are not only incentivizing private businesses but also reducing the time and costs of the construction of affordable housing. This puts us on a fast track to solving the housing crisis facing communities across the country." — U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani

  There is broad concern that despite the checks and balances built into the voting system, Republican members of state and county boards tasked with certifying elections will be driven by conspiracy theories and refuse to fulfill their roles if former President Donald Trump loses again.

  In November, Arizona voters will decide on a state constitutional amendment, Proposition 139, that would guarantee access to abortion up to the point of fetal viability - a would mark a major shift in state law that currently bans abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

  Public records advocates say an Arizona law that allows police departments to charge hourly rates to review body-worn camera footage before releasing it is leading to massive fees for the public and potentially illegal charges.

  Yuma-area U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested a woman Friday evening for allegedly trying to smuggle two children into the U.S., authorities said.

  Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos will face GOP challenger Heather Lappin in an online debate Tuesday. Plus, Arizona Corporation Commission and legislative debates are on tap.

  Pima County is seeking creative investment solutions to pay for capital projects, a Marana transportation plan is set for a vote, PCC readies for accreditation visit, and more from government meetings around Tucson.

  Two U.S. citizens face federal charges after Border Patrol's elite tactical team raided a home in Bisbee, Ariz., in mid-August, arresting 10 people, including seven in the country without authorization.

  State regulators issued an air quality permit to South32's Hermosa Mine this week, clearing one more hurdle for the manganese and zinc project planned for the Patagonia Mountains in Southern Arizona.

  Nearly 24 hours after a 60-year-old Mexican man was seriously injured when he plummeted from the border wall, members of the Arivaca Volunteer Fire Department managed to evacuate him by cutting through a nearby welded-shut gate, sources said.

  Democratic challenger Kirsten Engel criticized U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani for his voting record on abortion rights and his rejection of a bipartisan immigration proposal during a Thursday debate.

  The U.S.-Mexico border is once again dominating a U.S. presidential election, and while the need and desire to migrate to the U.S. has only grown in recent decades, the U.S.’s embrace of immigration has waned, with deadly consequences.

  An Arizona woman and member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was sentenced Thursday to house arrest and probation for her role in protecting the leader of a child sex ring from FBI investigation.

  Pedestrians die at the highest rates not in brightly lit big cities where sidewalks are crowded with office workers, but in Western and Southern rural areas and small cities where poverty forces more people to walk on dark highways with inadequate sidewalks or shoulders.

  The economy of drag isn’t well known, but there is no questioning the money involved, and yet still, drag shows continue to be frequent targets of far-right lawmakers in Arizona — a state with a strong history of championing small business.