PHOENIX — One of the more than 50 business and community leaders who are endorsing Gov. Katie Hobbs for reelection says the incumbent governor is the best choice for Arizona.
Voters need to do their homework and make their own decisions outside of partisan politics, Monica Villalobos, the president and CEO of the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, told ABC15 on Tuesday.
“As a lifelong Republican, I can tell you that this has not been an easy decision for me,” she said. “I often say that I did not leave the Republican Party. I have not left the Republican Party – it left me when it started to trade in chaos and hostility.”
Villalobos, part of the Arizona Over Party coalition backing Hobbs over the Republican nominee, U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, said she did a lot of soul-searching.
“I had to look my kids in the eyes,” she said. “I have two teenage sons, and I had to know that when their mother was asked to do the right thing, that she did it. And the right thing is making sure that we're doing what's best for our state and for our country.”
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Hobbs will almost certainly need votes from both Republicans and independents to win reelection.
According to the most recent voter registration numbers from the Secretary of State’s Office, Democrats only make up 28.1% of the electorate. Republicans have a seven-point advantage over Democrats with 35.4% of the electorate. But independents are close behind at 34.6%.
Villalobos said Arizona needs Hobbs, calling her a “battle-tested governor.”
“This is not a time in the game to change out your best player,” she said.
Ducey endorses Biggs
Shortly after Hobbs held a panel discussion with Villalobos and John Graham, the chairman and CEO of Sunbelt Holdings, former Gov. Doug Ducey announced he is endorsing Biggs.
“I’ve spent much of my time in public service fighting for freedom and free enterprise,” he said in a statement. “Today, there’s a starker contrast than I’ve ever seen in the public square between common sense and people running under the banner of Socialism and many other bad ideas.”
Ducey called on his past supporters to vote for the entire Republican ticket, saying the party also needs to win congressional and legislative races.
Drew Sexton, a senior advisor to Biggs’ campaign, contrasted the former two-term governor’s endorsement with Hobbs’ Arizona Over Party coalition on social media, pointing to the inclusion of former Arizona House Majority Whip Chris Herstam.
In 2020, Herstam said Ducey and state lawmakers “should be shot” if they would not allow all-mail voting during the COVID-19 pandemic. He apologized for his remarks two days later.
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