Local Politics · Tucson, AZ
Tucson voters appeared on track to reject Proposition 421, a 25-year franchise agreement between the city and Tucson Electric Power governing utility work in public rights of way. After the Pima County Elections Department released new tallies late Tuesday night, the measure trailed by roughly 7 points, with 48,367 votes for and 55,644 against. TEP spent more than $3.9 million campaigning for approval, according to See the Money. The agreement, approved by the Tucson City Council in April, would have provided the city $2 million annually for sustainability programs, growing to a total of $64 million. Opponents from Public Power for Tucson argued the deal was unfavorable and called for a publicly owned utility instead.
Education · Pima County
Pima County voters approved school funding propositions 427, 429, 430, and 426 in the general election, with first-round results released around 8 p.m. Tuesday. Prop. 427 passed at 53 percent, authorizing a $250 million bond for facility upgrades at Pima Joint Technical Education District's nine satellite campuses. Prop. 430 also passed at 53 percent, providing $250 million for Pima Community College building improvements, while Prop. 429 extended a maintenance and operations override for Tanque Verde Unified School District at 58 percent. Voters narrowly rejected Prop. 428, which sought the same override for Sahuarita Unified School District, by just over 50 percent against. Amphitheater Unified School District's Prop. 426, granting authority to sell or lease vacant properties including four closed elementary schools, passed with 76.12 percent. Officials noted more ballots remain to be verified and counted, so the narrow margin on Prop. 428 may shift.
Local Politics · Pima County
Democratic candidate JoAnna Mendoza led incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani 58-39 in the first tally of Southern Arizona's Congressional District 6 results released just after 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, narrowing to 57-41 as more votes were counted. Mendoza declared victory around 9 p.m. at an election night party at the Westward Looks, while Ciscomani told supporters the race would take several days to call. Many ballots remained uncounted in the swing district spanning Pima, Cochise, Pinal, Graham and Greenlee counties, where early ballots still needed verification before tabulation.
Local Politics · Pima County
U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva was declared the winner of Arizona's Congressional District 7 race over GOP challenger Daniel Butierez, with early Pima County returns showing her at roughly 75 percent of the vote just after 8 p.m. Tuesday. The election-night celebration took place at El Casino Ballroom, where Grijalva noted CNN had declared the U.S. House flipped to Democratic control. Grijalva previously defeated Butierez in a September 2025 special election following the March 2025 death of her father, former Rep. Raul Grijalva. Pima County Elections Department officials and other counties were expected to release updated tallies as Election Day ballots were tabulated, with additional early ballots still requiring verification by the Pima County Recorder's Office.
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Local Politics · Tucson, AZ
First vote tabulations released just after 8 p.m. Tuesday by the Pima County Elections Department showed Democratic candidates leading in several competitive Southern Arizona state legislative districts, including Districts 17, 23, and 16. Polls closed at 7 p.m., and officials noted many races remained too close to call pending verification of early ballots dropped off in recent days or on Election Day by the Pima County Recorder's Office. The preliminary results covered races spanning Pima, Pinal, Yuma, Cochise, Santa Cruz, Graham, Greenlee, and Maricopa counties. Incumbent Sen. T.J. Shope trailed Democratic challenger Elaine Aldrete 46-54 percent in GOP-leaning District 17, while Rep. Mariana Sandoval and rookie Emilia Cortez led the House race in District 23.
Local Politics · Tucson, AZ
In late-night Pima County election returns released Tuesday, incumbent Jennifer Eckstrom led the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board race with 51,066 votes, while newcomer Pilar Acosta Ruiz led for the second seat with 30,390. The election occurred as TUSD plans to consolidate schools, potentially shuttering up to 10 campuses. An unknown number of early ballots still required verification by the Pima County Recorder's Office before final tabulation. The article also reported results from races in Amphi, Tanque Verde, Pima JTED, Marana, Vail, Sahuarita, Catalina Foothills, and other school districts across Pima County.
Local Politics · Pima County
Arizona voters had until 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, to cast ballots in the 2026 election across more than 120 Pima County vote centers, with first results expected just after 8 p.m. More than 77,000 ballots were cast or dropped off on Election Day, adding to over 293,000 early ballots already returned. This year marks the first time Arizona voters can verify their ID at a vote center when dropping off an early ballot, bypassing the post-election signature review process. Races include Congressional District 6, statewide offices, Tucson-area Legislative Districts 16, 17 and 23, South Tucson City Council seats, school district governing boards, eight statewide propositions and local Pima County measures. Election officials cautioned that full tabulation will take several days as vote-by-mail ballots undergo signature matching.
Transportation · Tucson, AZ
The City of Tucson invites the public to a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday, November 6, from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Downtown Links Deck Plaza, celebrating completion of the Downtown Links Phase III West-End project. The final phase connects Barraza-Aviation Parkway to St. Mary's Road and includes a new Sixth Street underpass removing an at-grade railroad crossing, a deck plaza, expanded bicycle and pedestrian facilities, and flood-protection infrastructure. Construction began in August 2020 as part of the voter-approved RTA transportation plan. The event will feature performances by the Barbea Williams Performing Company and folklorico and mariachi groups from Roskruge Bilingual K-8, along with a dedication of the Sixth Street Underpass. Parking is available at 9th Avenue/Church Avenue and in the neighborhood north of the Deck Plaza.
