Here are the candidates for Arizona's 8th Legislative District

By Connor Van Ligten
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Arizona's 8th Legislative District, which encompasses parts of Phoenix, Tempe, Scottsdale Mesa, and the entirety of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, has two house seats and one senate seat up for grabs in the 2026 elections.

LD8 is currently controlled by three democrats, all of whom are running for reelection. Currently, there are four house candidates and two senate candidates.

State House

Janeen Connolly

Democrat Janeen Connolly

(Janeen Connolly for Arizona)

Democrat Janeen Connolly is currently one of two incumbents running to retain their seat in the Arizona House for LD8.

Connolly is a Mesa Community College gradute and a two-time ASU alumna.

Connolly assumed office in 2025. She has previously worked for the Salt River Project in community relations, grassroots advocacy, and public involvement for 27 uears.

Connolly's platform is focused on job creation, housing, and energy leadership.

Brian Garcia

Democrat Brian Garcia

(Brian Garcia for Arizona)

Garcia took office in 2025. He was born and raised in Arizona by parents from El Salvador and the Pascua Yaqui Tribe in Mexico.

Garcia earned a bachelor's degree in global studies from Arizona State University and as well as a Master of Legal Studies in 2017 and a Juris Doctor from the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

Garcia's platform revolves around clean elections,  community advocacy, and no pledges from fossil fuel related donors.

Claudia Kline

Democrat Claudia Kline.

(Claudia Kline for LD8)

Kline was raised by a single mother and grew up navigating systems like SNAP. She earned a master's in social justice by age 22 and worked on a tenant's rights campaign in Los Angeles among other volunteer work.

She has also served as  the exectuvie director of Rural Liberation.

Kline has a master’s in social justice and community organizing and a bachelor's in social justice and ethnic studies from Prescott College. She currently works as the president of Maricopa County Young Democrats as well as Young Democrats of Arizona.

Kline's platform revolves around climate change, education reform and child care, universal healthcare, affordable housing, protecting democracy and listening to her district.

Donald Hawker

Donald Hawker, Republican candidate for state house in Arizona's eighth legislative district.

(Arizona Secretary of State)

Hawker does not currently have a candidate website. According to his declaration of qualification nomination paper filed with the Arizona Secretary of State, Hawker is 73 years old and resides in Tempe.

State Senate

Lauren Kuby

Democrat Lauren Kuby.

(Lauren Kuby for State Senate)

Kuby assumed the position in 2025. She is a former Tempe council member, vice mayor, and ASU Global Futures Scientist.

Kuby has a BA from the University of Chicago in american history as well as a master's in public history and certificate of scholarly publishing from Arizona State University.

She serves as a ranking member of the Senate Government Committee and serves on the Judiciary/Elections and Appropriations committees. She also represents Senate Democrats on the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority. 

Kuby's platform emphasizes clean energy, climate adaptation and mitigation, water conservation, local control, abortion access, fair elections, voting rights, campaign finance reform, public school funding, teacher attainment and retention, childcare subsidies, affordable housing, worker protections, and more.

Deborah Nardozzi

Democrat Deborah Nardozzi

(Deborah For Arizona)

Nardozzi founded the South Scottsdale Democrats Club and served District 8 in the Arizona State House from April 2024 to January 2025.

Nardozzi received education at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and the University of New Mexico. She currently works as president of her consulting company Ta Da Agency.

Nardozzi's platform revolves around funding public schools, affordable housing,  and affordable childcare.

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Connor Van Ligten
Reporter | Fountain Hills/Scottsdale

cvanligten@iniusa.org

After graduating from Arizona State University's Cronkite School in spring 2022, Connor Van Ligten spent a little over year as a reporter for WWL-TV in New Orleans before finding themselves back in Phoenix in October of 2023. Now back in the Valley and writing for the Mesa Independent and the Daily Independent, Connor is ready to tell meaningful stories and report on important civic issues facing Mesa. Connor is a big fan of the 49ers, Warriors, pro wrestling, anime, dogs and fighting video games.