Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes announced he would not run for a U.S. House of Representatives seat left empty after the death of southern Arizona political icon Rep. Raúl Grijalva.

After telling journalists and his staff that he was “seriously considering” a candidacy, Fontes, a Democrat, said on March 26 he instead would focus on administering elections.

“With this week’s executive order from the Trump administration, I firmly believe the president is laying the groundwork to cancel the election in 2026,” Fontes said.

“I have considered the pros and cons of running for Congress. It is clear to me that our party must fight harder and stand up to the rising tide of fascism sweeping this nation,” he said in a statement.

Fontes cited Trump’s most recent executive order that would require proof of citizenship in a federal election, which was signed by the president March 25.

Fontes told Democratic attorney Marc Elias he believed a legal battle was on the horizon as President Trump attempted to change the process for the mid-term election of 2026.

“After careful thought and reflection, I have decided that for family, for country, and for democracy, I will continue to defend America as Arizona’s Secretary of State,” Fontes said.

Who are likely candidates for Grijalva’s seat?

The decision set up what election observers expected to be a two-way race between former state Rep. Daniel Hernandez Jr., who announced his run on March 24, and Adelita Grijalva, a daughter of the late congressman, who has not made a formal announcement to run.

Adelita Grijalva also serves on the Pima County Board of Supervisors in the same seat her father held decades ago.

Before Grijalva’s death, three other Democratic candidates — Andrew Becerra, David Bies and Abdul hadi Ghulam Habib — had filed paperwork indicating their interest in running for the 7th Congressional District seat in 2026.

As of March 26, 22 people had filed a statement of interest to run for the seat in the special election, including 10 Republicans, 10 Democrats, one Libertarian and one Green Party member.

The primary election will take place on July 15, and the general election will be held in September.

Arizona Republic reporters Laura Gersony and Mary Jo Pitzl contributed to this article.

Reach reporter Rey Covarrubias Jr. at rcovarrubias@gannett.com. Follow him on X, Threads and Bluesky @ReyCJrAZ.