Arizona Capitol Times Your Inside Source for Arizona Government, Politics and Business

Steve Gaynor finally conceded late Friday he isn't going to be secretary of state.

That record number of Arizonans who turned out to vote this year has a dark side for direct democracy: It's going to be harder for voters to propose their own laws or get rid of ones they don't like.

Katie Hobbs is going to be Arizona’s next secretary of state – and a heartbeat away from governor – absent a sudden and unlikely last-minute burst of votes from Maricopa County favoring Steve Gaynor, her Republican opponent.

Republican Justin Olson will be taking the second open spot on the Arizona Corporation Commission, and Democrat Katie Hobbs is making headway in her bid to be the next secretary of state.

The latest votes counted appear to put Democrat Sandra Kennedy close to being able to reclaim a seat on the Arizona Corporation Commission.

Attorneys for members of the Arizona Corporation Commission told a judge Tuesday he should block a bid by one of the panel's members to investigate whether financial help they got or are suspected of getting from Arizona Public Service for their elections tainted their vote to allow the company to collect more money from customers.

The latest batch of votes counted Monday put the U.S. Senate out of the reach of Republican Martha McSally and into the hands of an Arizona Democrat for the first time since 1994.

Any losing candidate in the general election who is counting on an automatic recount needs to come close to winning. Really close.

New election returns Sunday put Democrat Katie Hobbs in striking distance in the race for secretary of state.

New figures Saturday evening show Democrat U.S. Rep. Kyrsten Sinema has amassed 1,048,655 votes. That gives her a lead over Republican U.S. Rep. Martha McSally that now approaches 30,000.