Marlene Galan-Woods Discusses the Race for the Democratic House Congressional District One Primary

Arizona House Congressional District (CD) One is one of the most-watched Congressional races in the country. 

A district where, in 2022, incumbent David Schweikert prevailed in a non-Presidential election year by about a point, has Democrats gleeful that this seat can be a pickup on the road to recapturing a House majority in this November’s elections. 

So gleeful that there are six Democrats vying to secure their party’s nomination this July to campaign for the seat in the November elections. 

Journalist, Mesa Arts Academy founder, and Phoenix Children’s Museum Co-Founder Marlene Galan-Woods is one of them. 

A front-runner candidate in this primary race, Ms. Galan-Woods graciously took time to discuss the status of the primary campaign.

The questions and his responses are below. 

• How would you assess your chances for victory in the July primary? Please give us at least two reasons you feel that way. 

I feel excellent about our chances of winning in July in this primary. And the reason is we have built a really strong coalition of support in this Democratic primary that is quite unprecedented. Not only am I the only candidate with a sitting statewide official supporting me – Attorney General Kris Mayes – but also our former Governor Janet Napolitano has endorsed me. I am endorsed by former US senator Dennis DeConcini as well as a sitting member of Congress from our delegation, Congressman Grijalva. I am also endorsed by Emily’s List, and I am endorsed by 99% of labor organizations that have endorsed in this race including Teachers, Firefighters, UFCW (grocery store workers), the AFL-CIO, and many more are behind my candidacy. They trust me to beat David Schweikert, and they trust me to get the work done.”

“I would say that as the only woman in this race and the only mom in this race, reproductive health care and access to an abortion is utmost in the minds of many in this district and I can speak frankly quite personally to this in a way that others cannot. This is a personal assault on me as the only one who’s given birth and frankly, the only one who has had a miscarriage. I know what the stakes are in this fight. I have a 20-year-old daughter who has fewer rights over her body than I did growing up and no one will fight like me to make sure that every girl and woman in this country has power over her body regardless of the ZIP code that she lives in.”

• With regards to the policy issues, what are at least two areas voters have been bringing up to you when visiting them at their door or town hall campaign events? Please explain.

“As I said, access to reproductive health care is at the top of everyone’s minds. I mean we are living in a time right now where my opponent David Schweikert has co-sponsored a bill six different times called The Life At  Conception Act that would ban abortion without IVF carve-outs, and would even limit contraception. I’m not sure what decade they would like to bring us back to. I’m looking forward to protecting our girls. We have to refight this fight and I’m going to fight it for all the girls and women out there.”

Then I would say to you that voting rights and protecting our democracy is a huge deal. Democracy is literally on the ballot and I am committed. I am a first-generation Cuban American. My parents risked everything to come to this country for freedom and Democracy and I will not let their sacrifice go in vain. I will make sure again that every American in this country has safe and equal access to the ballot box and that we stop these legislatures around the country from passing laws that suppress the vote. We must pass a voting rights bill to ensure every American can have their voice heard.”

 Has anyone brought up the border security with you or immigration reform?

“Yes, and I’m glad you asked that because I have been talking about immigration reform since the first day. I announced my candidacy 14 months ago. So, this has been top of mind for me, and the voters who I have talked to since then have appreciated that I’ve brought it up. We must get grown-ups in the room to come up with Comprehensive Immigration Reform that ensures dreamers a right to citizenship, that ensures that we have a worker visa program, that ensures safety at the border that’s humane and that we have humane asylum. This must be comprehensive and again we need grown-ups in the room to get the work done who will reach across the aisle to get this work done.”

Has anyone brought up Mr. Trump’s convictions?

“Well, yeah. I mean it’s been pretty hard to ignore and it’s just shocking that the Republicans have decided to nominate a convicted felon. But that’s their problem. We will make sure that he doesn’t set foot in the White House again. And we have to ensure that we flip the House and keep the Senate.”

• Please tell the readers about the composition of your ground get-out-the-vote operation for the primary and, if you prevail, the general election in November. 

“Well in the primary we are doing absolutely everything we can to make sure that we reach every voter. We are knocking on doors. I am attending two or three different events every day. We are on the telephone. We have volunteers on the other side of this door who are making phone calls. I would be the first Latina to go to Congress from Arizona. As the only Latina in this race, I am not taking any vote for granted and I am reaching out to the Latino community in this district so voters know what’s at stake and that they know they’ve got to get out and vote. I can personally speak to them in Spanish and that has been part of our ground game as well.”

•  Is there anything not covered in the first three questions that you like the readers to know about your primary campaign for Arizona House Congressional District One?  Please explain.

I am the strongest candidate in this race and I will defeat David Schweikert – and everyone from my primary opponents to Republicans knows it. I am the only candidate in this primary who’s been attacked by Republicans since the beginning of this year.  Republicans with ties to Schweikert and even George Santos have dropped a negative, lying ad about me since the beginning of the year. They did so actually just a couple of weeks ago. They spent tens of thousands of dollars in a futile effort to try to bounce me off the ballot. Republicans are terrified that I will win this primary because they know that I will beat David Schweikert. That’s why I have the support of over a dozen unions, Attorney General Kris Mayes, and former Governor Napolitano. They know it too. They know that I will beat David Schweikert.”

What do you say to people who think you are a late arrival to the Democratic party?

 “I would say take a look at who’s supporting me.  Take a look at who’s supporting me.  I’ve got our Democratic Attorney General, Kris Mayes. I’ve got Emily’s List. I’ve got the former Governor Janet Napolitano who trusts me to get this work done. Trust me at my word. I have always been pro-choice. I am a proud Democrat. I will tell you that I am a proud Democrat because we are going to be the ones to protect women’s rights and we are the ones who are going to protect Democracy. I would tell you, the voters, and my opponents in this race to take a look at who’s supporting me. They had the chance to support five other candidates in this race. And they didn’t. They chose me. They trust me to beat David Schweikert and they trust me to get the work done in Congress.”

Please click on the link here to research Ms. Galan-Woods’s campaign website in the race for the Democratic Party nomination in Arizona Congressional District One.