The November 8 election carries with it a possibility that the Arizona Senate will end up split 15 to 15 between Republicans and Democrats, which could lead to a rare show of legislative bipartisanship that hasn’t been seen since 2000, when the Senate last was split. Lobbyist Mike Gardner was the Senate chief of staff during the last split, so we sat down with him to learn more about the functions of a split Senate and his projections for the race.

In the last two years, more than two dozen legislators who had received the support of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry during the 2012 elections fought the business community on two of its biggest policy battles — upholding Common Core and expanding Medicaid.

Facing a high prevalence of diabetes, many American Indian tribes are returning to their roots with community and home gardens, cooking classes that incorporate traditional foods, and running programs to encourage healthy lifestyles. The latest effort on the Navajo Nation, the country's largest reservation, is to use the tax system to push people to ditch junk food.

Residential and commercial builders’ groups are hopeful that a compromise on Arizona’s safety standards for construction workers will prevent a federal takeover of the state’s decades-old worker safety agency.

A trio of union-busting bills considered by a House committee on Tuesday met a varied fate: One passed, one was tabled to stave off a likely failure, and another was killed but later resurrected and approved when two Republican lawmakers changed their minds.

During the two sessions of the 50th Legislature, members of the press increasingly had to think twice about where they were and were not allowed to go.

This week's most outstanding quips, gibes and utterances

This week's most outstanding quips, jibes and utterances.

Seeking some new perspective at the Capitol, a handful of politicos are looking at ways to bring more structure and efficiency to the legislative session in the hope that more people — particularly those in the business world — would be able to run for office.

With Arizona’s jobless rate hanging stubbornly at 9 percent, next year’s election will come down to one issue that trumps all others: jobs.

And as dozens of lawmakers gear up for the campaign season — including the 25 freshmen elected last year — they know that voters will be expecting them to do something about it.