U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Tucosn, in May 2024. Photo by Gage Skidmore | Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0
Former Democratic state lawmaker Kirsten Engel conceded her race against incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani Wednesday afternoon.
Engel was aiming to unseat Ciscomani in the hotly contested battle to represent southern Arizona’s competitive Congressional District 6, which includes the eastern half of Tucson and stretches to the state’s southern and eastern borders. The race has been a priority for Democrats hoping to flip the seat blue this year.
“The voters have made their decision and we must respect that,” Engel said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter. “While we came up short, I couldn’t be prouder of the work we put in to give voice to the needs and aspirations of Southern Arizonans in Washington.”
The race, which has not yet been called by the Associated Press, has seen the two candidates bounce back and forth for the lead. However, in recent days, Ciscomani has maintained a solid lead over Engel and is currently ahead by nearly 7,000 votes.
The race is a rematch of 2022, when Ciscomani defeated Engel by less than two percentage points.
“Earlier today, Kirsten Engel called to concede the race and congratulate our team on winning a second term. Now, it is time to get to work,” Ciscomani said in a press release. “The American Dream is a promise that every American deserves a fair shot at building a better life. As I return to Washington, I promise to bring the voice of Arizona’s 6th District with me and to work across the aisle to keep that dream within reach for Arizonans.”
The Tucson Sentinel reported that Engel focused her campaign on Ciscomani’s votes to restrict abortion access and his links to a conservative organization whose leaders support “restoring Biblical values in your neighborhood, state and nation” and oppose abortion and LGBTQ rights. Ciscomani has served on the board of directors of the nonprofit that oversees the Texas-based Patriot Academy.
Ciscomani, meanwhile, boasted that he was ranked one of the most bipartisan lawmakers in the House of Representatives and he has brought federal dollars home to CD6, which includes precincts in Pima, Pinal, Cochise, Graham and Greenlee counties. He also described Engel as “out-of-touch and elite” and said she was weak on border security and didn’t support law enforcement.
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