Celebratory chants of “Si se puede!” broke out Tuesday night at Democrat Adelita Grijalva's Election Night party as she defeated rival Republican Daniel Butierez in the race for an open seat in Congress.
Grijalva will succeed her father, U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva, the progressive Tucson Democrat who was in Congress more than two decades, until his death in March. He died at age 77 of complications from cancer treatments, leaving the 7th Congressional District seat to be filled in Tuesday's special election.
Adelita Grijalva was ahead of Butierez 70% to 28% in initial results, according to the Arizona Secretary of State's Office; there were also two third-party candidates on the ballot. More than 80% of the votes had been counted so far, the Associated Press estimated. The district has a nearly two-to-one Democratic registration edge over Republicans.
The congresswoman-elect has served on the Pima County Board of Supervisors and the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board, a path that mirrors her father's route to Capitol Hill.
“More than 50 years ago, my dad started a movement, unions, environmentalists, reproductive LGBTQIA and immigrant activists, immigrant rights activists, all united behind a common goal, rooted in justice, dignity and equity for all," Grijalva told supporters gathered at South Tucson's El Casino Ballroom for the election results. "Fifty years later, that movement is alive and well in all of us.
“This victory is ours, ours, and together, we broke the glass ceiling,” she said. “First Latina congresswoman from Arizona. ... And I promise I might be the first, but I will not be the last."
Adelita Grijalva (D), left and Daniel Butierez (R), candidates for the Arizona Congressional District 7 seat.
“We are living in unprecedented times," Grijalva continued. "(President Donald) Trump is going after the values we hold dearly as Americans, equality under the law, due process and freedom of speech. Thus far, Congress has acted as his rubber stamp, abdicating their constitutional responsibility as a co-equal branch of government. But the voters of Southern Arizona ... reject the MAGA agenda and we will hold this administration accountable.
"That is why, on my very first day in office, I will be the decisive 218th (vote) on the discharge decision to force the vote on the release of the Epstein files."
She said she will also begin work immediately on her agenda, listing environmental justice, respecting tribal sovereignty, "lowering costs for working people by repealing Trump's unilateral authority to impose tariffs that are driving a cost on everything," reversing cuts to Medicaid and SNAP "and protecting the social safety nets that our children and our seniors rely on," among others.
Butierez, at his Election Night party at the north-side Tucson Brother John's restaurant, held his grandson as he told his crowd, to applause: “Through this whole thing, we have caused a movement, folks."
But, even before the polls closed Tuesday evening, he told reporters, "I'm tired. I funded my own campaign. I've been doing this on my own, I haven't had any help from any of the party.”
Butierez said his campaign didn’t receive enough support from the Republican Party itself, “and that’s why I’ve run as a man for the people.”
The businessman had made his political debut with an unsuccessful bid against Raúl Grijalva for the seat in 2024.
Prior to Tuesday night's results, Butierez said if he lost he planned to go fishing, near Yuma.
""What I have learned the most from this is that the Republicans haven't been reaching out into the south side," he said. "They haven't reached out to the Hispanic community. And I have taught them, most of them, that it is important that they reach out to the Hispanic community. ... So I can say, no matter what happens, I did something for my community.
"I've shown the Republicans what they need to do to win CD-7, start winning seats within Pima County," he said. "It requires them reaching across the aisle and becoming friends with their neighbors, so that they can hear what they have to say. If (neighbors are) screaming at each other, no one's going to listen. You've got to sit down and start talking."
Grijalva, in thanking her own supporters, recalled, “We launched the campaign on March 31 just two weeks after we lost my amazing dad, and couldn't say his name without crying. The community has mourned with us and carried us through the hardest time in our lives, and I will be forever grateful.
"This campaign was never about me or any one person. ... It wasn't about my last name, either. A last name alone doesn't earn you the trust from the community service does, and my dad's legacy is one of service to Southern Arizona. He literally fought until his last breath for this community. He served more than 50 years, and he was the most progressive member of Congress, full stop.”
"No matter how dark things get, we must never give up," she continued. "We fought these battles before and won, and we will win again. You are all sending ... a fighter, a guerrera from Tucson, south side, to D.C.”
