Democratic challenger Kevin Volk is leading the three-way race for two Arizona House seats from Tucson-area District 17, taking 39.2% of the votes counted so far, unofficial results released Tuesday night show.
Incumbent Rachel Jones follows in second at 31% of votes, with incumbent Cory McGarr running third at 29.8% as of 8:12 p.m.
The House currently holds a slight Republican majority of 31-29.
“I felt compelled to run because I think we need to do a lot better at the state legislative level,” Volk told the Arizona Daily Star in an interview. “We’ve seen the state Legislature in Phoenix start to resemble the Congress in D.C. in terms of some pretty irresponsible governance and management of our budget.”
According to Volk’s campaign website, he wants to bring down living costs, invest in education, secure our water foundation and restore reproductive freedom. He was previously an intern for former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, and now works for Volk Company, a real estate agency that focuses on small businesses.
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According to Jones’ website, she has fought for Arizonans' “God given rights” including "backing the blue", gun rights, election integrity and medical freedom. A first-term representative, she is a part of the ultra-conservative Arizona Freedom Team.
McGarr has fought to seal the border, combat inflation, defend parents’ rights and stop the "extreme" agenda of Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, according to his campaign website. He is also a part of the ultra-conservative Arizona Freedom Team.
McGarr and Jones are both against abortion and praised the state Supreme Court for upholding an 1864 near-total abortion ban last spring. Volk is in favor of restoring protections for abortion access.
More results are expected to be reported later tonight.
Legislative District 17 House candidates: Cory McGarr (R, incumbent), left, Rachel Jones (R, incumbent), and Kevin Volk (D).
