TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – Election Day is just 18 days away and big names from both sides of the ticket are honing in on southern Arizona more than ever.

However, such an influx of political messaging is increasing the risk of voter fatigue.

“I’ve talked to people all the time who say they’re sick of it and even, you know, when I opened my mailbox, I’m flooded with the flyers from both campaigns. I think a lot of people have that experience,” said University of Arizona Political Science Professor Samara Klar.

It’s hard not to notice campaign ads in Arizona. A fact that can feel overwhelming to residents, but political analysts said it was meant to be that way.

“Arizona is currently projected the second-highest broadcast spending of any state in the country, and arguably, Arizonans are going to see more political ads than anyone else in the USA,” said Noble Predictive Insights CEO Mike Noble.

Outside of the political ads, southern Arizona has also seen both presidential and vice-presidential candidates stop in town over the past few weeks.

Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton are all set to visit the state in the coming days.

While it might seem like overkill experts said these campaigns aren’t necessarily worried about that.

“From the perspective of the campaigns, there is not a lot of risk in oversaturating voters with the message. The risk is not reaching people. So, if somebody feels fatigue, does that make them less likely to vote? Probably not,” Klar said.

It puts a lot of pressure on one state which has trickled down to the mindset of voters. A 2024 Pew poll found 65% of U.S. adults feel exhausted by politics.

With the presidential race in Arizona only being decided by 10,000 votes last election, there’s an extra focus on the state and that has created even more fatigue for residents this year.

“We noticed that folks are, (hitting) the saturation level, and we’re clearly at it, because we’ve never received so much (messaging),” Noble said.

Despite the stress many feel on the big-ticket politics, experts said the biggest impact could be on local races and ballot measures, which could be drowned out by a historic election year.

“The problem is, if you’re a smaller race running for state (legislator) or some justice level, so these more local races, the problem is it’s really hard to break through because it’s so darn noisy,” Noble said.

The noise is not expected to slow down anytime soon as Obama will be in Tucson Friday. 13 News’ J.D. Wallace will be at the event and bring you more starting at 3 p.m. You can watch his reporting live at www.kold.com/live

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Brent Brennan and his staff are looking to secure the commitments they have in the 2025 class. A short cycle following him taking over as head coach of Arizona didn’t quite allow him and his staff to hit the recruiting trail hard.

Because of that, 2026 is going to be the first class they are able to put all their efforts and attention into as part of the Wildcats program.

Right now, Arizona has two commits, both rated as three-stars by 247Sports.

There is still plenty of time for them to make some waves and secure one of the top groups in the Big 12, something that will be needed if they are going to compete for conference titles on an annual basis.

Unfortunately, they got some rough news regarding one of their targets.

Four-star quarterback Helaman Casuga has officially announced his commitment to Texas A&M, making if official that he won’t be continuing his career in Tucson after Arizona was heavily pursuing him.

“I believe that they’re building something special down there. Obviously I want to be part of the Elko era. He’s done so many great things at Duke and now he’s showing he’s capable of doing it at a SEC school,” he said per On3.

The 6-foot-1 signal caller is ranked 144th overall in the 2026 class and No. 14 at the quarterback position by On3’s Industry Ranking.

It’s not a huge surprise Casuga didn’t pick the Wildcats considering he didn’t have them as one of his finalists, but Arizona was very much in the mix for a long period of time prior to his final cut.

The good news is the Wildcats already have two quarterback commits in their 2025 class, so it wasn’t imperative they landed someone this cycle.

Where Brennan and his staff turn their attention to following this news will be seen.

7-Eleven is closing more than 400 stores in the United States and Canada, officials said, crediting fewer sales due to inflation and continued declines in cigarette sales.

The 444 stores to close are among 13,000 stores the convenience chain has in the United States and Canada. A list of stores to close was not released by the company, which announced the plan to shutter the stores during its most recent earnings call late last week.

7-Eleven is not the only store shuttering locations due to declining sales. Walgreens recently announced closures and a host of others to close stores or declare bankruptcy this year, including Hooters, Red Lobster, Bed Bath & Beyond and Big Lots.

Here’s what Arizona shoppers need to know about the 7-Eleven closures and locations in the state.

More Big Lots in Arizona are closing: Here’s which stores are affected and which remain

Will 7-Eleven stores in Arizona close?

The company didn’t release a list of stores and 7-Eleven did not immediately respond to the USA TODAY Network’s request for a list of locations closing.

When will 7-Eleven stores close?

The closures were expected to happen in the fourth quarter of this year, officials said.

Why is 7-Eleven closing stores?

Traffic and sales were challenged “as consumers pull back due to inflationary pressure,” according to 7-Eleven, and consumer cigarette sales continue to decline industry-wide.

To counteract its recent challenges, the company said it would grow its proprietary products, including fresh food and its proprietary beverages, accelerate digital and delivery, including continued growth in its loyalty program and grow and enhance its store network.

Seven & i Holdings, the parent company of 7-Eleven, also said it would bundle some of its “non-core assets” into a new holding company and rename itself ‘7-Eleven Corp’ to emphasize the focus on its profitable convenience stores.

After rejecting a bid in August by the operator of Circle K, Alimentation Couche-Tard, the Japanese operator of 7-Eleven stores is facing pressure to convince investors it can enhance value, saying it undervalued the company and its growth potential.

The new holding company, to be called York Holdings, is set to house 31 subsidiaries, including the group’s superstores business, general goods store Loft, baby goods store Akachan Honpo and the operating company of Denny’s restaurants in Japan.