Arizona's 1st Congressional District elections, 2014

U.S. House, Arizona District 1 General Election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Ann Kirkpatrick Incumbent	52.6%	97,391
	Republican	Andy Tobin	47.4%	87,723
Total Votes				185,114
Source: Arizona Secretary of State

2016 → ← 2012

Arizona's 1st Congressional District

General Election Date November 4, 2014

Primary Date August 26, 2014

November 4 Election Winner: Ann Kirkpatrick

Incumbent prior to election: Ann Kirkpatrick

Race Ratings Cook Political Report: Toss Up Sabato's Crystal Ball: Toss Up

Arizona U.S. House Elections District 1 • District 2 • District 3 • District 4 • District 5 • District 6 • District 7 • District 8 • District 9

2014 U.S. Senate Elections

In a race that was labeled a "toss-up," voters chose between a Democratic incumbent who argued that she had a better understanding of what locals wanted because she lived within district lines and a Republican challenger who lived just outside of the district but said residents needed a representative who would not always vote in support of President Barack Obama's policies.

On November 4, 2014, incumbent Ann Kirkpatrick (D) defeated Republican challenger Andy Tobin in her re-election bid for the U.S. House of Representatives to represent Arizona's 1st Congressional District. Kirkpatrick said that she was victorious because “people know me. They’re common-sense people, and I think they saw through the partisan games.”

Fueled by satellite spending, OpenSecrets.org listed Arizona's 1st Congressional District as the seventh most expensive House race in 2014 with a total of $15,575,994 spent. This race was also "one of the most competitive districts in America, where political brand is no guarantee of victory. More than most places, this part of the state has a habit of switching from Democrat to Republican and back," according to The Arizona Republic.

Arizona's 1st Congressional District was one of Ballotpedia's U.S. House battleground districts in 2014 because of Kirkpatrick's vulnerability as a Democrat serving in a district that leaned Republican. Additionally, Kirkpatrick won the seat in 2012 with a margin of victory of just 3.7 percent over Jonathan Paton (R). Republican presidential candidates John McCain and Mitt Romney also won the district in 2008 and 2012.

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) and Tobin tied Kirkpatrick to President Obama's policies in a strategy many Republican challengers adopted this election cycle. Kirkpatrick, unlike most Democrats who sought re-election, did not run away from Obama's policies and held strong on key Democratic issues, including the Affordable Care Act and immigration reform, which may have been why her fate was different from some of her colleagues. She explained why she stood by her vote for the Affordable Care Act, despite its unpopularity nationally. She said, “I always put my district first, and those votes reflected my district."

Kirkpatrick and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) were also successful in charging Tobin, who had the backing of the Republican establishment, with hurting the state by cutting education spending as a state representative. In addition, Kirkpatrick argued that Tobin's stance on immigration would impede economic growth.

Kirkpatrick also accused Tobin of not understanding the district. Kirkpatrick said, "My opponent unfortunately is one of the few candidates in Arizona who can't vote for himself because he doesn't live in the district. That's not representation.” Tobin, who lived just outside of the district in Paulden, Arizona, addressed his residency issue by saying, "I know what rural Arizona needs. I don’t think they’re looking for someone who wants to get in lockstep with President [Barack] Obama and Ann Kirkpatrick and Harry Reid.”

Heading into the election, Sabato’s Crystal Ball, The Rothenberg Political Report, The Cook Political Report and Real Clear Politics all rated this race a toss-up.

Candidate Filing Deadline	Primary Election	General Election
May 28, 2014	August 26, 2014	November 4, 2014

Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Arizona utilizes a semi-closed primary system. Unaffiliated voters may choose which party's primary they will vote in, but voters registered with a party can only vote in that party's primary.

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Voter registration: To vote in the primary, voters had to register by July 28, 2014. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 6, 2014.

See also: Arizona elections, 2014

Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was Ann Kirkpatrick (D), who was first elected in 2012.

The 1st District stretches along the eastern and northeastern portions of the state and includes Apache, Coconino, Graham, Greenlee, and Navajo counties. Portions of Gila, Maricopa, Mohave, Pima, Pinal, and Yavapai counties are also included in the district.

Candidates

General election candidates

Ann Kirkpatrick

Andy Tobin

August 26, 2014, primary results

Democratic Primary

• Ann Kirkpatrick - Incumbent a

Republican Primary

• Adam Kwasman - State representative
• Gary Kiehne - Businessman
• Andy Tobin - State representative a

Election results

General election

U.S. House, Arizona District 1 General Election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Ann Kirkpatrick Incumbent	52.6%	97,391
	Republican	Andy Tobin	47.4%	87,723
Total Votes				185,114
Source: Arizona Secretary of State

Primary election

U.S. House, Arizona District 1 Republican Primary, 2014

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Andy Tobin	35.8%	18,814
Gary Kiehne	35.1%	18,407
Adam Kwasman	29.1%	15,266
Total Votes		52,487
Source: Arizona Secretary of State

Race background

General election

Debates

Kirkpatrick and Tobin argued about the effectiveness of the Affordable Care Act, immigration reform, educational spending, job creation and environmental regulations in a debate held on September 24, 2014. In the debate, Tobin blamed Kirkpatrick for a number of issues including her support for President Obama. He said, "I think it’s clear that Congresswoman Kirkpatrick stands with President Obama. And I think that’s part of the critical crisis we’re going through in rural Arizona today." Kirkpatrick attacked Tobin for his work in the state legislature. Referencing spending cuts, she said, "You refused to provide the funding for our most vulnerable children and for education and good schools. That’s what businesses are going to look at if they’re going to come to Arizona."

Kirkpatrick also accused Tobin of not understanding the district. After putting her leg on a table to show off her boots, which have been "a symbol of her roots in the district," Kirkpatrick said, "I want viewers to see: These are actually the real thing. My opponent unfortunately is one of the few candidates in Arizona who can't vote for himself because he doesn't live in the district. That's not representation."

The candidates participated in another debate on October 14, 2014. The candidates largely stuck to their prior strategies in the debate, with Tobin tying Kirkpatrick to Obama and Kirkpatrick claiming that Tobin was unable to understand a district that he did not live in. The candidates did agree on some issues. Both supported President Obama's airstrikes against ISIS but believed congressional approval was necessary for any escalation. Neither candidate vowed to never vote for tax increases as well.

Satellite spending

Fueled by satellite spending, OpenSecrets.org listed Arizona's 1st Congressional District as the 7th most expensive House race in 2014 with a total of $15,575,994 spent. The DCCC spent $3,112,975 solely against Tobin, and the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) spent $4,227,366 in support of Tobin and against Kirkpatrick. House Majority PAC, which spent $1,975,120, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which spent $300,000, also had a significant impact on this race.

Navajo Nation

Arizona's 1st Congressional District is the most Native American district in the country, with roughly 25 percent of citizens of Native American descent. The Navajo Nation's presidential election coincided with the 2014 midterm election on November 4, and according to Jack Fitzpatrick of National Journal, this may have helped Kirkpatrick, "who grew up on an Apache reservation and has released two Navajo-language radio ads this cycle.” Fitzpatrick noted that “Native American turnout can be hard to predict, especially in a rural district where pollsters can't reach voters who don't have landline phones. It also doesn't help Democrats that Navajo and Arizona elections have different polling places and some voters may not participate in both elections.”

Ann Kirkpatrick

Vulnerable incumbent

Incumbent Ann Kirkpatrick (D), was one of seven early targets listed by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) in the 2014 congressional elections. The seven targets aligned perfectly with the seven most Republican districts held by Democrats, according to FairVote's partisanship index. Kirkpatrick's district ranked as the 6th most Republican.

Kirkpatrick was a member of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Frontline Program. The program was designed to help protect vulnerable Democratic incumbents heading into the 2014 election.

Redistricting

Kirkpatrick was first elected to the House in 2008. She then lost her re-election bid to Paul Gosar in 2010. Due to redistricting, Gosar was moved to the 4th Congressional District. Kirkpatrick ran for the newly open 1st District seat and won it back in 2012. She is one of five House Democrats who were ousted in 2010 and won back a seat in 2012.

Andy Tobin

NRCC

The National Republican Congressional Committee added Tobin to their "On the Radar" list in November 2013. According to the NRCC, candidates that made this list received "the tools they need to run successful, winning campaigns against their Democratic opponents."

Residence

Tobin lived just outside of Arizona's 1st Congressional District in Paulden, Ariz. His residence was a point of contention throughout the race, but Tobin argued that he knew the district well. He said, "I know what rural Arizona needs. I don’t think they’re looking for someone who wants to get in lockstep with President (Barack) Obama and Ann Kirkpatrick and Harry Reid.”

Republican primary

In a Republican primary that was too close to call for more than a week after the primary election, Tobin ultimately triumphed over Gary Kiehne by just under 1 percent of the vote. After conceding, Kiehne said, "My top priority this fall is to see Republicans win here in Arizona, so I want to offer all of my support to our Republican nominee Andy Tobin and all of the other Republican nominees in the general election."

Migrant children comment

Candidate Adam Kwasman mistook a bus of YMCA campers for an expected group of immigrant children being moved to a shelter in Oracle, Ariz. Upon seeing the bus Kwasman tweeted, "Bus coming in. This is not compassion. This is the abrogation of the rule of law." He then told a reporter, "I was actually able to see some of the children in the buses. The fear on their faces.... This is not compassion." When he was informed of his blunder, he said, "I apologize, I didn't know. I was leaving when I saw them."

Kwasman's cancer

Kwasman revealed that he had a rare blood cancer, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, on August 14, 2014, just two weeks before the primary election. Kwasman said that the cancer is slow-growing, has presented no symptoms and will likely require no treatment for up to a decade. When speculation emerged that he was trying to use the diagnosis to generate goodwill, Kwasman responded, "The story was already getting out there. This is not about politics. ... I don't understand why telling people I have cancer is good publicity."

Ebola

Tobin suggested that Central American migrants could bring the Ebola virus to the United States in an interview in the Tucson Weekly on August 21, 2014. Tobin said, "Anything's now possible. So if you were to say the Ebola virus has now entered (the country), I don't think anyone would be surprised... to the extent that they're really aware of that. I think there is a reason we should be concerned about it and say, 'Hey, can you assure us the people crossing the border are not from the Middle East?'…So I use that as an example, that the public would not be surprised to hear about the next calamity at the border."

Endorsements

Andy Tobin

On March 29, 2014, Speaker John Boehner headlined a fundraiser for Tobin and Martha McSally (AZ-02).

Polls

General election
Poll	Ann Kirkpatrick	Andy Tobin	Undecided/Other	Margin of Error	Sample Size
American Action Network (September 16-18, 2014)	42%	48%	10%	+/-4.9	400
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected]

Media

Ann Kirkpatrick

EmbedVideo is missing a required parameter. House Majority PAC ad supporting Ann Kirkpatrick

DCCC ad attacking Tobin on education cuts

Opposing Kirkpatrick

LIBRE Initiative ad attacking Ann Kirkpatrick for voting for Obamacare

NRCC ad attacking Kirkpatrick for "carrying Obama's baggage"

Gary Kiehne

Kiehne for Congress "Washington is Broken"

Issues

See also: Energy and the 2014 election: the ballots and beyond

Campaign themes

Ann Kirkpatrick

Kirkpatrick's campaign website listed the following issues:

• 2nd Amendment

Excerpt: "I am a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment. The NRA has awarded me an "A" rating for my efforts to defend Second Amendment rights."

• Immigration and Border Security

Excerpt: "Immigration and border security issues are especially urgent here in Arizona, but unfortunately we’ve seen many elected officials and candidates use these issues for their own political gain instead of actually solving the problems."

• Jobs for Arizona

Excerpt: "It’s all about jobs. We need jobs in Greater Arizona, and we need to get folks back to work. Our middle class has been smashed by the recession and is struggling to keep up with the rising cost of basic living expenses, gasoline, college education, and health care. I am committed to making Greater Arizona home to a revived middle class by making the creation of good-paying local jobs my top priority. "

• Protecting Medicare and Social Security

Excerpt: "Our seniors worked hard and held jobs their whole lives to earn the benefits that Medicare and Social Security provide. During this economic downturn, seniors are counting on Social Security and Medicare more than ever, and after years of hard work, they deserve the peace of mind these programs provide."

• Building Critical Infrastructure

Excerpt: "I strongly support creating thousands of good-paying jobs in Greater Arizona and empowering our economic recovery through investments in critical infrastructure projects."

Republican primary

Gun violence

While speaking at a Republican primary debate, Gary Kiehne made the claim that 99 percent of mass shootings in the country were committed by Democrats. He said, "If you look at all the fiascos that have occurred, 99 percent of them have been by Democrats pulling their guns out and shooting people. So I don’t think you have a problem with the Republicans."

Kiehne later apologized, saying "This past weekend, I made a comment about the political affiliation of perpetrators of gun violence in the heat of a debate. I’ve since learned that the information that I based the comment off of was inaccurate and incorrect. I’ve always believed that when you make a mistake, you should own up to it. Too many politicians today offer nothing but spin and excuses when they say something they shouldn’t have. I’m not going to do that. Simply put, I shouldn’t have made the comment, and I want to offer my apology for making it without any reservations."

Key votes

Below are important votes Kirkpatrick cast during the 113th Congress.

Government shutdown

See also: United States budget debate, 2013

On September 30, 2013, the House passed a final stopgap spending bill before the shutdown went into effect. The bill included a one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate and would have also stripped the bill of federal subsidies for congressional members and staff. It passed through the House with a vote of 228-201. At 1 a.m. on October 1, 2013, one hour after the shutdown officially began, the House voted to move forward with going to a conference. In short order, Sen. Harry Reid rejected the call to conference. Ann Kirkpatrick voted against the stopgap spending bill that would have delayed the individual mandate.

The shutdown ended on October 16, 2013, when the House took a vote on HR 2775 after it was approved by the Senate. The bill to reopen the government lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies. The House passed the legislation shortly after the Senate, by a vote of 285-144, with all 144 votes against the legislation coming from Republican members. Ann Kirkpatrick voted for HR 2775.

Campaign contributions

Ann Kirkpatrick

Ann Kirkpatrick (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
April Quarterly	April 15, 2013	$7,757.86	$314,137.54	$(76,999.97)	$244,895.43
July Quarterly	July 15, 2013	$244,895.43	$311,893.37	$(104,011.45)	$452,777.35
October Quarterly	October 15, 2013	$452,777.35	$295,690.75	$(95,816.14)	$652,651.96
Year-End	January 31, 2014	$652,651	$268,973	$(97,465)	$824,159
April Quarterly	April 15, 2014	$824,159	$321,881	$(109,861)	$1,036,178
July Quarterly	July 15, 2014	$1,036,178	$420,640	$(157,979)	$1,298,839
Pre-Primary	August 14, 2014	$1,298,839	$192,950	$(136,320)	$1,355,469
October Quarterly	October 15, 2014	$1,355,469	$628,133	$(1,163,487)	$820,115
Pre-General	October 23, 2014	$820,115	$221,299	$(760,110)	$281,305
			Running totals
			$2,975,597.66	$(2,702,049.56)

Gary Kiehne

Gary Kiehne (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
October Quarterly	October 15, 2013	$0	$50,600	$(5,000)	$45,600
Year-End	January 31, 2014	$45,600	$217,073	$(51,999)	$210,673
April Quarterly	April 15, 2014	$210,673	$166,642	$(102,622)	$274,693
July Quarterly	July 15, 2014	$274,693	$193,150	$(130,820)	$337,022
			Running totals
			$627,465	$(290,441)

**As of the 2014 July Quarterly Report, Kiehne's committee owed $300,000 in outstanding loans to Gary Kiehne.

Adam Kwasman

Adam Kwasman (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
Year-End	February 1, 2014	$0	$102,555	$(23,183)	$79,372
April Quarterly	April 17, 2014	$79,372	$28,234	$(43,074)	$64,532
July Quarterly	July 15, 2014	$64,532	$74,549	$(51,003)	$88,078
			Running totals
			$205,338	$(117,260)

Andy Tobin

Andy Tobin (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
Year-End	January 23, 2014	$0	$235,120	$(43,767)	$191,352
April Quarterly	April 15, 2014	$191,352	$150,211	$(128,318)	$213,246
July Quarterly	July 15, 2014	$213,246	$176,810	$(169,554)	$220,502
Pre-Primary	August 14, 2014	$220,502	$39,861	$(178,201)	$82,162
October Quarterly	October 15, 2014	$82,162	$439,190	$(144,927)	$376,424
Pre-General	October 23, 2014	$376,424	$93,203	$(272,812)	$196,814
			Running totals
			$1,134,395	$(937,579)

District history

Candidate ballot access
Find detailed information on ballot access requirements in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

2012

On November 6, 2012, Ann Kirkpatrick (D) won election to the United States House. She defeated Jonathan Paton and Kim Allen in the general election.

U.S. House, Arizona District 1 General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Ann Kirkpatrick	48.8%	122,774
	Republican	Jonathon Paton	45.1%	113,594
	Libertarian	Kim Allen	6.1%	15,227
Total Votes				251,595
Source: Arizona Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

2010

On November 2, 2010, Paul Gosar won election to the United States House. He defeated Ann Kirkpatrick (D) and Nicole Patti (L) in the general election.

U.S. House, Arizona District 1 General Election, 2010
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Paul Gosar	49.7%	112,816
	Democratic	Ann Kirkpatrick incumbent	43.7%	99,233
	Libertarian	Nicole Patti	6.6%	14,869
Total Votes				226,918

See also

• United States House of Representatives elections in Arizona, 2014
• United States House of Representatives elections, 2014
• U.S. House battleground districts, 2014

External links

• Arizona Elections Division

Footnotes

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Arizona's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Ruben Gallego (D)

Mark Kelly (D)

Representatives

District 1

David Schweikert (R)

District 2

Eli Crane (R)

District 3

Yassamin Ansari (D)

District 4

Greg Stanton (D)

District 5

Andy Biggs (R)

District 6

Juan Ciscomani (R)

District 7

Raúl Grijalva (D)

District 8

Abraham Hamadeh (R)

District 9

Paul Gosar (R)

Republican Party (6)

Democratic Party (5)