Arizona
Can vice president candidate Tim Walz’s ‘Normal Joe vibe’ appeal to Arizona men?
Kamala Harris and Tim Walz fire up Philadelphia campaign rally
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris introduces her vice presidential pick, Tim Walz, during a campaign rally in Philadelphia.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz knocks Republicans for being “weird.” Can he win over Arizona men by being “normal?”
Vice President Kamala Harris’s brand new running mate is coming to Arizona, and political watchers here say he could draw independent male voters into her coalition if he can follow the playbook of another Democrat Harris considered for the post: Sen. Mark Kelly.
The 60-year-old Walz was relatively unknown outside of his home state of Minnesota until this week. Now, he has three months to introduce himself on the biggest stage in politics — and avoid being shoved into a political box.
“What has underwritten the success of Mark Kelly in Arizona, it’s the same basic thing that I think is going to underwrite the success of Walz in Arizona,” said David Waid, former executive director of the Arizona Democratic Party. “He is a Democrat who breaks the mold, who breaks the expectations and can’t be put neatly into a box.”
Since she took over the top of the ticket last month, Harris has made up much of the ground that President Joe Biden had lost to former President Donald Trump in the years since the 2020 election. The race has narrowed, public polling shows, and the Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan group that forecasts elections, this week moved Arizona from “lean Republican” to “toss-up.”
A new survey from the Arizona polling firm HighGround found Harris narrowly leading Trump in Arizona 44% to 42% among likely voters. She has a 15 percentage point lead among female voters, but Trump has a 10 percentage point lead with men. The survey was conducted July 30-Aug. 5 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.38 percentage points.
Walz certainly “will not hurt her with men,” said Chuck Coughlin, the president and CEO of HighGround and a longtime Republican strategist who left the party in the Trump era. The campaign also has a number of issues to clarify to voters during the Democratic National Convention later this month, he added.
“As the survey shows, she is struggling with men in general,” Coughlin said. “Having a strong and confident response on immigration and articulating a strong and confident position on Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan will help her with men. But most importantly, being clear-eyed about economic policies, tax cuts vs. deficit concerns will help her.”
If Walz can play up his working class and pro-union bona fides, his background as a teacher and his perspective as a hunter who understands gun rights, he could tap into what helped Kelly win back-to-back races in 2020 and 2022, Waid said. Walz showed he could win over Republicans when he flipped a red district during his first race for Congress in 2006.
“He’s going to be appealing to white men independents. I think he’s a perfect fit for that, and that is a very large voting block in Arizona,” Waid said. “This is something that can really begin to put some space between her and Trump, this VP choice.”
So far, Walz has received a warm reception from Arizona Democrats who have won statewide in recent years. Kelly said Walz and Harris are “building a campaign to unite our country” and Gov. Katie Hobbs said she is “absolutely thrilled” and even let out a scream when she heard the news. Rep. Greg Stanton, who called for Biden to step aside weeks ago, will attend the Harris-Walz rally in Phoenix on Friday.
But the Trump campaign is already working to cast Walz as “dangerously liberal,” playing up progressive initiatives he’s supported as governor. Trump’s team pointed to Walz’s support of stricter emission standards for gas-powered cars, cast doubt on his respect for rural America and tied him to Harris’s native California.
Trump, who is a convicted felon, also attacked Walz for “embracing policies to allow convicted felons to vote” in Minnesota.
“It’s no surprise that San Francisco Liberal Kamala Harris wants West Coast wannabe Tim Walz as her running-mate – Walz has spent his governorship trying to reshape Minnesota in the image of the Golden State,” Trump campaign Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a written statement. “Walz is obsessed with spreading California’s dangerously liberal agenda far and wide. If Walz won’t tell voters the truth, we will: just like Kamala Harris, Tim Walz is a dangerously liberal extremist, and the Harris-Walz California dream is every American’s nightmare.”
Some Republicans aren’t buying it. Sam Campana, the first woman mayor of Scottsdale and a lifelong member of the GOP, recently joined a group of Republicans backing Harris and Walz over Trump and Vance. She said that voters have outgrown those labels that the two parties fling at each other, such as “flaming liberal” and “ultra-conservative.”
“You can’t just listen to these labels anymore,” Campana said. “When you give them the biggest tax cut they’ve ever had, that doesn’t sound like a flaming liberal to me. You know, that sounds like somebody who really is listening and caring about their constituents.”
But other aspects of Walz’s record could hurt him with Arizona voters. Chad Heywood, the former executive director of the Arizona Republican Party, said Walz’s early campaign moves have been “great at making him a likable, common guy introducing himself.”
“That being said, his positions are very progressive, and I think a lot of the soft Republicans and moderate independent voters won’t appreciate his more liberal positions on controversial issues like gender-affirming care for minors, abortion, marijuana legalization,” Heywood said. “Probably a missed opportunity for the Harris ticket to have reached undecided moderate voters.”
Harris has been on defense when it comes to immigration, a top issue for Arizona voters. Democrats who have won statewide race in Arizona are often more conservative on the issue than their party is nationally, and Republicans killed a bipartisan immigration bill in Congress earlier this year to avoid handing Democrats an election year victory on the issue.
Walz took a progressive track on immigration as Minnesota governor, namely expanding some state services to undocumented residents. Minnesota expanded drivers’ licenses to all Minnesota residents last year, regardless of their immigration status. The initiative was expected to benefit approximately 81,000 undocumented immigrants in the state, and 20 other states and territories do the same.
What does Walz bring to the Democratic ticket in Arizona?
What a vice presidential candidate can actually bring to the ticket is an often debated issue in politics. Even former President Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance have said they expect Vance to have little impact on the race. Vance had a rocky start to his role as Trump’s second-in-command, but tried to hit the reset button during a trip to Arizona last week.
Harris and Walz balance one another, Campana said, noting that Harris is a woman with a diverse background: her mother was Indian and her father is Jamaican. Walz will let Harris take center stage as the presidential candidate and “work hard in the background,” she said, the way that Harris did for Biden and Biden did for former President Barack Obama.
Both vice presidential candidates are “bringing a vibe to the ticket,” Waid said. Vance balances Trump’s septuagenarian status and speaks to the former president’s base, for example.
“Vance brings a, let’s call it a ‘Young MAGA’ vibe,” Waid said. And for Walz: “It’s more of what I think most Americans know as a ‘Normal Joe.’”
Arizona
NAU launches first-of-its-kind engineering degree to fast-track Arizona’s future workforce – The NAU Review
As Arizona’s semiconductor and advanced manufacturing industries continue to grow at a rapid pace, Northern Arizona University’s Steve Sanghi College of Engineering is launching a new degree program designed to help meet the state’s workforce needs.
Beginning this fall, NAU will offer a Bachelor of Professional Studies in Engineering Technology, a flexible, workforce-focused degree pathway that prepares students for careers in microelectronics, semiconductors and advanced manufacturing in as little as three years. The 90-credit bachelor’s degree creates a more accessible pathway into engineering careers through a hands-on, applied curriculum and a streamlined transfer model with Arizona community colleges.
The program follows a 45-45 completion structure, allowing students to complete 45 credits at a community college and 45 credits through NAU. Courses will be delivered through synchronous remote instruction at NAU’s North Valley campus in Phoenix and at Pima Community College in Tucson, increasing access for statewide students.
Addressing Arizona’s growing semiconductor workforce
Designed with workforce readiness in mind, the program emphasizes practical engineering application, systems implementation, testing, quality control, systems analysis, manufacturing, fabrication, process control and project management. Students will gain technical and problem-solving skills aligned with the needs of Arizona’s rapidly evolving manufacturing economy.
“This new bachelor’s degree empowers students to identify real-world engineering challenges and develop practical solutions,” said James Palmer, associate dean for academic affairs at the Steve Sanghi College of Engineering. “We are creating a more accessible pathway into engineering careers while preparing graduates to support Arizona’s growing microelectronics and semiconductor industry.”
Arizona has emerged as one of the nation’s fastest-growing semiconductor hubs, with more than $200 billion in semiconductor-related investments announced in the Greater Phoenix region since 2020, including expansions from Intel, TSMC and Amkor Technology. TSMC alone has committed up to $165 billion toward Arizona operations, including multiple fabrication plants and advanced packaging facilities expected to create thousands of technical and manufacturing jobs.
Industry demand continues to grow for professionals with applied engineering and advanced manufacturing skills in areas such as process engineering, manufacturing systems, equipment operations and yield enhancement. NAU’s new degree program was developed to help students quickly enter these high-demand career fields while supporting Arizona’s long-term economic growth and domestic semiconductor manufacturing capacity.
The program also aligns with NAU’s strategic commitment to expanding access to affordable, student-centered educational opportunities that prepare graduates for meaningful careers and long-term success.
Students interested in learning more about the Bachelor of Professional Studies in Engineering Technology program should contact SCE@nau.edu.
PHOENIX (AP) — The two Republican congressmen running for Arizona governor pitched themselves at a debate Wednesday as the only candidate with broad enough voter appeal to unseat Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs amid the state’s affordability struggles.
U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, who is the GOP primary’s frontrunner and has the endorsement of President Donald Trump, portrayed himself as being able to cross party lines and having the right experience to be the state’s chief executive.
“There’s not a doubt in my mind, if you look at the polling data that you’re going to find, I am the most competitive with Katie Hobbs of anybody on this stage in any Republican in the state,” Biggs said.
U.S. Rep. David Schweikert, who has survived three tough Democratic challenges in recent years, believes his focus on government finances and his drive to bring new business to the state make him the singular Republican candidate.
“These are wonderful people, but they’ve never actually been in the great battle,” Schweikert said of Biggs and two other Republican opponents.
Businessman Scott Neely, who ran an unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign in 2022, said after the debate that if Biggs wins the primary, Republicans will lose the election.
The winner of the July 21 primary will face Hobbs, who’s running unopposed in the primary.
Biggs has served five terms in the U.S. House, representing a heavily GOP district in the eastern Phoenix suburbs and serving at one time as chairman of the ultra-right U.S. House Freedom Caucus.
Before that, Biggs served in the Arizona Legislature from 2003 through 2016, including four years as president of the state Senate. He battled with then-Republican Gov. Jan Brewer on a Medicaid expansion in 2013 and pushed school choice measures and bills targeting abortion providers.
Biggs is one of Trump’s top defenders in Congress and supported Trump’s false claims the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him.
Schweikert, a budget hawk known for railing against government debt, has represented an affluent district that includes parts of northeast Phoenix and Scottsdale for eight terms. He served in the Arizona House in the 1990s and as Maricopa County’s treasurer in the 2000s.
Schweikert has focused his congressional career on sounding the alarm about the federal budget deficit and the ballooning U.S. debt, often in late-night speeches to a nearly empty House chamber and bleary-eyed C-SPAN viewers. Schweikert has praised Trump’s 2017 tax cuts but has called for more spending cuts to reduce federal borrowing.
His reputation was tarnished by ethics scandals. In 2022, he received a $125,000 fine by the Federal Election Commission for misappropriating campaign funds. Two years prior, he agreed to pay a $50,000 fine and accept 11 campaign finance violations after an investigation by the U.S. House Committee on Ethics. In his last three general campaigns for Congress, Schweikert staved off challenges from Democrats. Biggs voiced support for Arizona’s recent passage of a three-year moratorium on tax incentives for new data centers – a move Hobbs also has touted. “They shouldn’t be given a break,” Biggs said, noting the large amounts of power and water that data centers use.
Schweikert bemoaned Arizona’s unfavorable affordability rankings as “pretty miserable,” but said consumer prices don’t come down magically. He vowed to aggressively recruit businesses to Arizona and push for wage growth.
Both congressmen were asked about the expired healthcare subsidies for those getting coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
“We’re going to have to deal with the reality of subsidization of everything in the economy is not going to work,” Schweikert said.
Biggs said he introduced legislation in Congress to bring down healthcare costs and also voiced support for Trump’s proposal to send money directly to Americans for health savings accounts so they can handle insurance and health costs as they see fit.
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