Here's your Arizona redistricting cheat sheet
As we head into a new election year, here's what you need to know about the new districts.
The Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission finalized new legislative and congressional maps in December that will set the course for who wins office and party control in elections for the next decade. It’s a big deal! We’ve been saying so repeatedly. But it’s a wonky topic, so we’re going to make it as simple as possible.
As promised, we scraped together a handy little guide to learning the new district numbers, stats and their rough equivalent under the old maps. For the sake of brevity, we stuck to the congressional districts and the five competitive legislative districts. But If you really want to geek out on the maps, the Independent Redistricting Commission has more data and detailed maps on its site.
Feel free to share this cheat sheet with others who should know how this year’s election is shaping up with new districts!
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS
CD1: Old CD6
Area: Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and Cave Creek with the Arcadia neighborhood and north central Phoenix as its western border.
Incumbent: David Schweikert (R)
Status: “Highly competitive” but Republican leaning. Worse for Schweikert.
CD2: Old CD1
Area: Northeastern Arizona, including the Navajo Nation, Flagstaff, Prescott and Show Low, wrapping east around the Valley to incorporate the San Carlos Reservation and the Gila River Indian Reservation between Phoenix and Casa Grande.
Incumbent: Tom O’Halleran (D)
Status: Republican leaning. Worse for O’Halleran.
CD3: Old CD7
Area: Central Phoenix, roughly bordered by Phoenix Sky Harbor in the east, Laveen in the south, and Glendale in the northwest.
Incumbent: Ruben Gallego (D)
Status: Safe Dem district.
CD4: Old CD9
Area: Tempe, Chandler and Mesa.
Incumbent: Greg Stanton (D)
Status: Dem leaning. Worse for Stanton.
CD5: Old CD5
Area: Gilbert, Queen Creek, Apache Junction and the San Tan Valley.
Incumbent: Andy Biggs (R)
Status: Safe Republican district.
CD6: Old CD2
Area: From southeastern Arizona (excluding the border town of Douglas and liberal enclave of Bisbee) taking in Green Valley and wrapping around the north and eastern edges of Tucson to Casa Grande and Safford.
Incumbent: Ann Kirkpatrick (D) — not seeking re-election
Status: “Highly competitive” but Republican leaning. Worse for Democrats.
CD7: Old CD3
Area: Southwestern Arizona, stretching from Yuma to Avondale, south through most of Tucson and running along the U.S.-Mexico Border through Nogales and Santa Cruz County to Douglas and Bisbee on the southeastern edge of the state.
Incumbent: Raul Grijalva (D)
Status: Safe Dem district.
CD8: Old CD8
Area: The Northwest Valley, including Peoria, Sun City West, Anthem and New River
Incumbent: Debbie Lesko (R)
Status: Safe Republican district.
CD9: Old CD4
Area: Northwest Arizona, including Colorado City, Bullhead City, Lake Havasu City, and parts of Yuma, stretching east to the western edge of the Valley, including Luke Air Force Base.
Incumbent: Paul Gosar (R)
Status: Safe Republican district.
LEGISLATIVE DISTRICTS
LD2: Old LD15
Area: North Phoenix, roughly north of Thunderbird Road, between Interstate 17 and State Route 51, stretching north nearly to the Carefree Highway.
Incumbents: Reps. Steve Kaiser (R), Judy Schwiebert (D), Justin Wilmeth (R). None in Senate.
Status: “Highly competitive” but Republican leaning.
LD4: Old LD28
Area: Paradise Valley and Scottsdale, bordered by State Route 51 on the west and State Route 101 on the east, the district takes in parts of the Arcadia neighborhood north of Indian School Road.
Incumbents: Sens. Nancy Barto (R), Christine Marsh (D). None in House.
Status: “Highly competitive” but Republican leaning.
LD9: Old LD25
Area: Downtown Mesa, east of State Route 101 and mostly north of Baseline Road and south of State Route 202 bordered on the east by Val Vista Drive.
Incumbents: Sen. Tyler Pace (R). None in House.
Status: “Highly competitive” but Democratic leaning.
LD13: Old LD17
Area: Chandler, Sun Lakes and western Gilbert, bordered by State Route 101 in the west and Gilbert Road in the east, from Hunt Highway in the south and Baseline Road in the north.
Incumbents: Sen. J.D. Mesnard (R) and Rep. Jennifer Pawlik (D).
Status: “Highly competitive” but Republican1 leaning.
LD16: Old LD8
Area: South of the Valley, along Interstate 10 through Casa Grande, Florence and the area west of Tucson.
Incumbents: Sen. T.J. Shope (R), Rep. Teresa Martinez (R).
Status: “Highly competitive” on paper, but Republicans have won every statewide election the IRC used in its competitiveness metric.
We hope this helps you understand changes in your district and in toss-up districts around the state that will affect representation at the statehouse and in Congress. To support work like this, please pay $8 per month or $80 per year to keep us in business.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this piece incorrectly identified LD13 as Democratic leaning. It leans Republican.