Gov. Katie Hobbs (D-AZ) tapped the former Republican mayor John Giles of Mesa, Arizona, as her running mate ahead of her November reelection matchup against GOP gubernatorial candidate Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ).
“The first thing I looked for in a running mate was someone who shares that value of putting Arizonans ahead of partisan politics. That’s why I’m proud to introduce my running mate, former Mesa Mayor John Giles,” Hobbs said in her announcement message.
Giles led the city east of Phoenix as mayor from 2014 to 2025. County records showed him as registered as a Republican until May 2026, when he changed his voter registration to independent, according to multiple reports. Giles has long been a critic of President Donald Trump, going against party lines as a registered GOP member and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.
“I was a lifelong Republican before becoming an independent because extremists shouldn’t stand in the way of getting things done,” Giles said in the Tuesday announcement.
Giles said he is “proud” to join the Democratic ticket as Hobbs’s pick for lieutenant governor because he believes Hobbs “will continue to put Arizona first.” In the announcement video, Hobbs also touted her efforts to crack down on illegal immigration at Arizona’s southern border and lower taxes as she attempts to pull bipartisan support ahead of her matchup against Biggs.
“Whether you’re a Democrat, Independent, or Republican, if you believe in protecting our freedoms and putting Arizona first, we’re ready to fight for you,” Hobbs said in her message.
But Biggs, who is backed by Trump and Turning Point USA, has hit Hobbs hard for taking Arizona in “the way of California,” in a campaign ad for the Arizona gubernatorial race. Biggs has campaigned on working with Trump to secure the southern border and on making Arizona more affordable by lowering taxes and reducing government regulations.
This is the first year Arizona has allowed gubernatorial candidates to select their own lieutenant governor picks, instead of running separately. Hobbs’s pick of Giles was publicly announced Tuesday, despite a New York Times report last week.
Biggs selected former GOP state Sen. Sine Kerr as his running mate in late July. Kerr currently serves as Arizona’s state executive director of the Farm Service Agency under the Trump administration’s Department of Agriculture, according to the Arizona Mirror.
BIGGS WINS REPUBLICAN PRIMARY, WILL FACE HOBBS IN ARIZONA GOVERNOR RACE
Hobbs has led in limited polling by usually single-digit margins, and the race is considered “Leans Democratic” by the Cook Political Report.
However, Hobbs bested GOP candidate Kari Lake by just 0.7 percentage points in her 2022 election. Trump also flipped the state in 2024, beating Harris by a 5.5-percentage-point margin.