Katie Hobbs

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Katie Hobbs
Katie Hobbs (51956779107) (cropped).jpg
21st Secretary of State of Arizona
Assumed office
January 7, 2019
GovernorDoug Ducey
Preceded byMichele Reagan
Minority Leader of the Arizona Senate
In office
January 5, 2015 – January 7, 2019
Preceded byAnna Tovar
Succeeded byDavid Bradley
Member of the Arizona Senate
from the 24th district
In office
January 7, 2013 – January 7, 2019
Preceded byDon Shooter
Succeeded byLela Alston
Member of the Arizona House of Representatives
from the 15th district
In office
January 3, 2011 – January 7, 2013
Preceded byDavid Lujan
Kyrsten Sinema
Succeeded byJohn Allen (redistricted)
Personal details
Born (1969-12-28) December 28, 1969 (age 53)
Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpousePatrick Goodman[1]
Children2
EducationNorthern Arizona University (BSW)
Arizona State University, Tempe (MSW)
WebsiteCampaign website

Kathleen Marie Hobbs[2] (born December 28, 1969) is an American politician and social worker who is serving as Secretary of State of Arizona since January 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, she was an Arizona state senator representing the 24th district from 2013 to 2019 and an Arizona state representative representing the 15th district from 2011 to 2013.

She is the Democratic nominee in the 2022 Arizona gubernatorial election.[3]

Early life and education

Hobbs graduated from Seton Catholic High School in 1988.[4] She earned her bachelor's degree in social work from Northern Arizona University in 1992 and a master's degree in social work from Arizona State University in 1995.[5] Hobbs has been a social worker since 1992.

State legislature

Hobbs was elected to the Arizona House of Representatives in 2010 and credited her interest in politics to Emerge Arizona.[6] Hobbs was inspired to run for office by the people she assisted as a social worker, believing they were not being heard by the government. She advocates ending domestic violence.[7]

In 2012, Hobbs was elected to the Arizona Senate, where she served two terms as Senate Minority Leader.[8] In 2015, during Hobbs' first term as Senate Minority Leader, Senate Staffer Talonya Adams, a black woman, complained to Hobbs about her concerns of racial discrimination and was later fired, in part, by Hobbs.[9] In November 2021, Adams won a discrimination lawsuit related to her firing and was awarded a judgement of $2.75 million dollars.[10]

Arizona Secretary of State

Hobbs sworn in as Secretary of State

On March 8, 2017, Hobbs announced she would run for Arizona Secretary of State.[11] In the 2018 election, she ran against local businessman Steve Gaynor in the contest. On November 6, 2018, the Associated Press prematurely called the race on election night for Gaynor,[12][13] With the race as close as it was, neither Hobbs nor Gaynor initially claimed victory.[14][15] In the days to come, Gaynor's lead narrowed as more and more ballots were counted. On November 16, 2018, Hobbs was officially declared as the winner by a margin of 20,000 votes.[16][17] She is the first Democrat to hold the post since 1995 and is holding the post as a Democrat under Republican Governor Doug Ducey, who was reelected in 2018.[17]

As Secretary of State, Hobbs stands first in the line of succession to Ducey. Arizona has no lieutenant governor; the Secretary of State, if holding office by election, ascends as governor in the event the governor either resigns or is removed from office.[18]

2020 Arizona election audit

Main article: 2021 Maricopa County presidential ballot audit

In 2021, the Arizona Senate Republican majority provided $150,000 for funding an audit aimed at contesting the 2020 presidential election results in Maricopa County. In a six-page letter, Hobbs claimed that the audit's chain of custody was lacking, describing it as "a significant departure from standard best practices."[19] Hobbs wrote that the audit procedures appeared "better suited for chasing conspiracy theories than as a part of a professional audit."[19] Following her claims regarding the procedures she received death threats, and the Arizona Department of Public Safety assigned personnel to guard her and her staff.[20]

The complaints made by Hobbs were echoed in a letter to the State Senate President Karen Fann from the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, which has a Republican majority of 4–1. Fann, referring to one of Donald Trump's claims of election fraud, contended that the county had deleted an entire database. The Board responded in a letter calling the accusations "false, defamatory, and beneath the dignity of the Senate."[21] It accused the Arizona Senate of "conspiracy theories that fuel the fundraising schemes of those pulling your strings."[21][22][23][24] In regard to the controversy, Fann responded that the audit would continue when the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum site is next available.[25]

After consulting with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and the Election Assistance Commission (EAC), Hobbs said she was told that it was impossible to know if the voting machines the county turned over in response to the Senate subpoena had been compromised, and Dominion Voting Systems should re-certify them for future use.[26] While the Arizona Senate's contractor was in possession of the machines that had been subpoenaed, the county spent over $20,000 to lease other machines in order to conduct two local elections, and the costs of re-certifying the surrendered machines after their return would be in the six-figure range; however, the Senate signed an agreement with the county that said the county is not liable for any damages to the equipment while in the Senate's custody, so it is unclear whether the county would be liable for the costs.[26]

2022 gubernatorial election

Main article: 2022 Arizona gubernatorial election

In October 2020, Hobbs announced that she would be a Democratic candidate for governor in the 2022 Arizona gubernatorial election. The incumbent governor, Doug Ducey, is term-limited.[27][28][29] She defeated Marco A. Lopez Jr. in the primary election to become the Democratic nominee.[30] Hobbs skipped the primary debate with Lopez.[31] and did not want to debate Lake.[32]

Personal life

Hobbs is affiliated with the National Association of Social Workers and is an adjunct faculty member at Paradise Valley Community College. Hobbs has a husband, Pat, and two children.[33][34][5]

References

  1. ^ Porier, Shar (September 21, 2019). "Q&A: Secretary of State Katie Hobbs discusses election safety, registration". Sierra Vista Herald. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  2. ^ "Secretary of State-Elect Katie Hobbs". 2019 State of Arizona Inauguration. December 26, 2018. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  3. ^ Oxford, Andrew (June 2, 2021). "In spotlight of audit, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs announces run for Arizona governor". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  4. ^ Reagan, Kevin (October 6, 2019). "Seton Catholic High celebrating 65 years of service". Gilbert Sun News.
  5. ^ a b "Katie Hobbs' Biography". Vote Smart. Archived from the original on June 7, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
  6. ^ Richmond, Riva (March 7, 2018). "Running Women Q&A: Katie Hobbs is Itching to Fight Voter Suppression". thestoryexchange.org.
  7. ^ Zepeda, Alyson (February 9, 2011). "New lawmaker profile: Rep. Katie Hobbs, D-Phoenix". Arizona Capitol Times. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
  8. ^ "Senate Member - Katie Hobbs". azleg.gov. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  9. ^ "A Black staffer in the Arizona Senate wins $2.75M judgement in discrimination case". kjzz.org. November 11, 2021.
  10. ^ Cooper, Jonathan J. (November 11, 2021). "Fired Senate staffer awarded millions in discrimination suit". apnews.com.
  11. ^ Sanchez, Yvonne Wingett (March 8, 2017). "Democratic state Sen. Katie Hobbs will seek to unseat Arizona Secretary of State Michele Reagan". Arizona Republic.
  12. ^ Forman, Carmen (November 6, 2018). "AP: Steve Gaynor Arizona's next Secretary of State". Arizona Capitol Times. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  13. ^ "Arizona Election Results Roundup". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  14. ^ Hobbs, Katie [@katiehobbs] (November 6, 2018). "I'm in this to win it and it's still too close to call. Arizona voters deserve to know their votes are still being counted" (Tweet). Retrieved November 30, 2018 – via Twitter.
  15. ^ "Katie Hobbs, Steve Gaynor in dead heat to become Arizona's next secretary of state". Arizona Republic. November 9, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  16. ^ "Arizona Election Results". results.arizona.vote. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  17. ^ a b "Gov. Doug Ducey congratulates Katie Hobbs on winning Arizona secretary of state's race". Arizona Republic. November 16, 2018. Retrieved November 16, 2018.
  18. ^ "Constitution of Arizona: Article V, Section 6". Arizona Legislature. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  19. ^ a b Wines, Michael (May 6, 2021). "Arizona Review of 2020 Vote Is Riddled With Flaws, Says Secretary of State". The New York Times. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  20. ^ Rappard, Anna-Maja; LeBlanc, Paul (May 7, 2021). "Arizona secretary of state assigned protection following death threats amid election audit". CNN. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  21. ^ a b Badash, David (May 18, 2021). "'Ineptitude' Republican-controlled county board slams Arizona audit firm as 'grifters and con-artists'". Alternet. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  22. ^ Levine, Sam (May 16, 2021). "Arizona Republican calls Trump 'deleted database' statement 'unhinged'". The Guardian. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  23. ^ Levine, Sam (May 14, 2021). "Cyber Ninjas, UV lights and far-right funding: inside the strange Arizona 2020 election 'audit'". The Guardian. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  24. ^ Funke, Daniel (May 18, 2021). "Fact check-False claim from Trump about Maricopa County election database". USA Today. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  25. ^ Helderman, Rosalind S. (May 18, 2021). "Arizona Senate president says 2020 recount would continue, despite strident objections from Maricopa County officials". Washington Post. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  26. ^ a b Fifield, Jen (May 20, 2021). "Arizona secretary of state may not let Maricopa County reuse voting machines after audit". Arizona Republic. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  27. ^ Herstam, Chris (January 6, 2020). "Katie Hobbs for governor – already?". The Times-Gazette. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  28. ^ Rosenblatt, Dillon (May 21, 2021). "Races for 2022 statewide offices taking shape". Arizona Capitol Times. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  29. ^ Oxford, Andrew. "In spotlight of audit, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs announces run for Arizona governor". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  30. ^ "Lopez Concedes Democratic Primary for Governor, Hobbs Says Time to Look Ahead". August 3, 2022.
  31. ^ "Ahead of the primary, Hobbs looking forward to the general election". ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix (KNXV). August 2, 2022. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
  32. ^ Christie, Bob (September 11, 2022). "Democrat Katie Hobbs says no to Arizona governor debate". Associated Press. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  33. ^ "Katie Hobbs". Arizona State Senate. Archived from the original on February 25, 2013. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
  34. ^ "The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy – Secy. of State Katie Hobbs (D)". CongressWeb.com. Archived from the original on October 13, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2020.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Katie Hobbs.
Arizona Senate
Preceded by Member of the Arizona Senate
from the 24th district
2013–2019 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minority Leader of the Arizona Senate
2015–2019 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Secretary of State of Arizona
2019–present 		Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Governor of Arizona
2022 		Most recent
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