Rep. Nancy Barto, R-Phoenix declared victory over incumbent Sen. Heather Carter Thursday evening, in a win for ideological purity over the pragmatism practiced by the more moderate Carter.

Struggling incumbents in too-close-to-call races didn’t see much change as county elections officials began making a dent in the roughly 210,000 mail ballots that remained to be counted after Tuesday’s primary.

A battle over the ideological heart of the Republican Party remains too close to call in Legislative District 15, where challenging Rep. Nancy Barto holds a narrow lead over incumbent Sen. Heather Carter.

Independent voters don’t have many contested races in Maricopa County in which they can sway the outcome with Arizona primary elections roughly two months away.

Rep. Barto’s bill makes small but important changes. Doctors and patients throughout the state hope the senators follow their counterparts in the House and approve HB2314.

Cancer-stricken firefighters, low-income pregnant women who need dental care and students pursuing careers as teachers or nurses stand to pay the political costs for two state senators who bucked their party leadership nearly a year ago.

When a patient goes to their personal doctor because they are experiencing a significant health struggle, they do so with the trust that their doctor will recommend a treatment based on a specific understanding of the unique complexities of their condition. All too frequently, however, the treatment agreed between patient and doctor is being delayed if not wholly pre-empted by a process imposed by insurance companies known as “step therapy.”

We all agree, health care costs must be managed. But to overlook the word “health” in providing health care removes all purpose. Rep. Nancy Barto is sponsoring HB2410, which will establish transparency, efficiency and fairness in patient health care through necessary reforms to step therapy protocols.

Arizona state lawmakers are being asked to keep boys – or at least those who are genetically identified as male – off of high school and college sports teams for girls and women.

The Arizona Attorney General’s Office punted on a lawmaker’s complaint into the City of Phoenix’s imposition of higher rideshare fees at Sky Harbor to the Arizona Supreme Court.