The results underscored Donald Trump’s grip on Arizona Republican primaries. But the general-election stakes are uneven, with one race rated a toss-up and another on much safer GOP terrain.
Trump-backed candidates Feely and Lamb dominated in Arizona primaries: Jay Feely won the Republican nomination in Arizona’s 1st Congressional District, and Mark Lamb won the GOP primary in the 5th District, according to Associated Press results reported by Roll Call. The Arizona primary results give Donald Trump two endorsed House nominees headed toward very different November fights.
Feely, a retired NFL kicker and sports commentator, is now in a toss-up Phoenix-area race. Lamb, the former Pinal County sheriff, moves forward in a much redder seat despite recent controversy.
Trump’s Arizona slate advanced
The clearest takeaway from Arizona’s Republican primaries was not subtle: candidates aligned with Trump had a strong night. Feely and Lamb both prevailed in House primaries, while Rep. Andy Biggs also dominated the GOP gubernatorial primary to challenge Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs.
Roll Call reported that Biggs, a former chair of the House Freedom Caucus, led a four-way gubernatorial field with 73 percent of the vote as 75 percent had been counted. Rep. David Schweikert, his closest opponent, trailed with 15 percent. Hobbs was unopposed for the Democratic nomination.
That matters because Arizona is again a central state in the national political map. It has competitive House districts, a Democratic governor seeking another term, and a Republican electorate where Trump’s backing remains a major signal to primary voters.
The primary results also reshuffled familiar names. Schweikert’s decision to run for governor opened the 1st District. Biggs’ move opened the 5th. Trump-backed candidates stepped into both lanes and came out ahead.
Feely moves into a toss-up
Feely’s win in Arizona’s 1st District is the result with the most immediate national House implications. The district, northeast of Phoenix, is viewed as one of the seats Democrats need to compete for if they are going to flip control of the House.
With 76 percent of the vote counted, Feely had just under 50 percent in the Republican primary, according to AP results cited by Roll Call. Former state Rep. Joseph Chaplik had 35 percent, and technology executive John Trobough had 15 percent.
Feely’s path was unusual. He first launched a campaign for the 5th District seat Biggs is leaving, then shifted in December to Schweikert’s 1st District seat with Trump’s encouragement, Roll Call reported. That move placed him in a more competitive race and made his nomination more consequential than a routine safe-seat primary.
The Democratic side was not settled early Wednesday. Former state Rep. Amish Shah, the 2024 Democratic nominee, was leading former broadcast journalist Marlene Galán-Woods and two other candidates with 77 percent of the vote counted, according to Roll Call. The AP had not called that primary as of early Wednesday morning.
A Democratic fight lingers
The unresolved Democratic primary in the 1st District adds a second layer to Feely’s win. Democrats have treated the seat as a serious opportunity, but the primary exposed disagreements over electability, institutional backing and local support.
Galán-Woods had support from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, EMILY’s List and the campaign arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, according to Roll Call. The DCCC also spent on her behalf, a decision that drew criticism from Shah and some Arizona Democrats, including Rep. Adelita Grijalva.
Shah, meanwhile, had support from current and former state legislators, including former Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers, a Republican who resisted pressure from Trump and allies after the 2020 election. Shah lost to Schweikert by 4 points in 2024, giving Democrats both a reason to try again and a reason to debate whether he is the strongest nominee.
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales rates the 1st District as a Toss-up. That rating is why Feely’s nomination is not just a celebrity-candidate story. It is now part of the fight for the House majority.
Lamb wins a redder district
Lamb’s victory came in different terrain. Arizona’s 5th District, southeast of Phoenix, is far more favorable to Republicans than the 1st. Roll Call noted that Trump carried the district by 20 points in 2024.
Lamb defeated homebuilder Daniel Keenan in the Republican primary. With 75 percent of the vote counted, Lamb led Keenan 59 percent to 41 percent, according to AP figures reported by Roll Call.
He will face Democrat Elizabeth Lee, described by Roll Call as a progressive who won a three-way primary. The district’s partisan lean gives Lamb a clearer general-election advantage than Feely, though the campaign will not be free of complications.
Lamb has faced scrutiny over allegations reported by The Arizona Republic. That investigation said he used threats to suppress allegations involving sexting and shared homophobic and racist texts. Lamb has called the allegations lies, according to Roll Call’s account.
Biggs shapes the statewide race
The House primaries were only part of the Trump-aligned showing. Biggs’ commanding lead in the gubernatorial primary sets up a race against Hobbs that will likely draw national attention.
Biggs has long been identified with the conservative wing of the House GOP, and his lead showed the strength of anti-establishment Republican politics in the state’s primary electorate. His nearest rival, Schweikert, is also a sitting Republican member of Congress, which made the margin especially striking.
For Hobbs, the primary night result clarified the opponent but not necessarily the full shape of the race. Arizona statewide elections have recently been close and expensive, and a Biggs-Hobbs matchup would test whether a hard-right profile can win beyond the GOP primary electorate.
The result also created a chain reaction across the map: Biggs’ gubernatorial run opened the 5th District for Lamb, while Schweikert’s gubernatorial bid opened the 1st District for Feely.
What remains unsettled
The Republican winners are now clear in the marquee races, but several questions remain. Final vote totals could still refine the margins. The Democratic nominee in the 1st District had not been called early Wednesday in Roll Call’s report. And the general-election environment could shift before November.
There are also two different political tests ahead. Feely must prove that Trump’s endorsement and his public profile can hold a competitive suburban seat. Lamb must show that controversy does not dent Republican support in a district that already leans heavily his party’s way.
Other Arizona contests will also matter. Roll Call noted that Rep. Juan Ciscomani is set to face Democrat JoAnna Mendoza in the 6th District, another race Inside Elections rates as a Toss-up. In the 2nd District, Republican Rep. Eli Crane is headed for a rematch with Democrat Jonathan Nez, the former Navajo Nation president; Inside Elections rates that contest Likely Republican.
The night’s message for Republicans was straightforward: Trump-backed candidates performed strongly in Arizona primaries. The November question is more complicated: whether those primary victories translate equally well in a toss-up district, a red district and a statewide governor’s race.
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