'The Fighter We Need': Progressive Adelita Grijalva Wins Special Primary for Her Late Father's Seat

Adelita Grijalva prevailed Tuesday in an Arizona Democratic primary race to fill the U.S. House seat left vacant by the death of her father, progressive stalwart Raúl Grijalva.

Grijalva previously served on the Pima County Board of Supervisors and the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board, and her congressional bid is backed by prominent progressive lawmakers and organizations including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC, National Nurses United, and the Working Families Party.

Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, implored Arizona voters to turn out for Grijalva in a video message posted on the morning of the primary contest, calling her "the fighter we need to take on Trump and the establishment."

With more than three-quarters of the vote tallied, Grijalva has 62% support. Deja Foxx, a 25-year-old activist and Grijalva's closest competitor, has received 21% of the vote as of this writing, according to The Associated Press.

"This is a victory not for me, but for our community and the progressive movement my dad started in Southern Arizona more than 50 years ago," Grijalva said following her decisive win.

"We know that Adelita is going to be a fearless fighter for working families in her district."

Arizona's 7th Congressional District is heavily Democratic, so Grijalva—who campaigned on defending Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security from Republican attacks, bolstering workers' right to unionize, and lowering housing costs—is virtually guaranteed to win the September special election.

"Adelita's victory tonight isn't just a win for families in Southern Arizona. It's a win for all those who believe in a government that works for everyday people," Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party, said in a statement late Tuesday. "Voters are tired of politicians who hide in the pockets of their billionaire donors. We know that Adelita is going to be a fearless fighter for working families in her district."

"There's real energy right now for a different kind of politics, one that puts working people first," Mitchell added. "That's exactly why the Working Families Party was founded—to take on the corporate interests and billionaires who are rigging our economy and taking a wrecking ball to our democracy."

The New York Times faced backlash for its specious coverage of the race's outcome, which characterized Grijalva's win as a blow to progressive momentum generated by Zohran Mamdani's victory in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary.

The newspaper, whose coverage of Mamdani's mayoral bid has been a frequent source of outrage and ridicule, described Foxx as "a Gen Z activist who tried to recreate the youthful magic" of Mamdani's campaign, glossing over ideological differences and other factors.

Mamdani did not weigh in on the race, and many of the progressive lawmakers and groups that supported the New York City democratic socialist backed Grijalva. Foxx, who has a large social media following, was endorsed by a PAC founded by activist David Hogg.

"This is where superficial generational discourse gets you," writer Adam Johnson observed on social media in response to the Times coverage of the Arizona contest. "An AOC and Bernie-endorsed candidate wins and it's somehow an indictment on Mamdani—who didn't endorse anyone and has nothing to do with the race."