Adelita Grijalva | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2025 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromArizona's7th district | |
| Assumed office November 12, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Raúl Grijalva |
| Member of thePima County Board of Supervisors from the 5th district | |
| In office January 1, 2021 – April 4, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Betty Villegas |
| Succeeded by | Andrés Cano |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1970-10-30)October 30, 1970 (age 55) Tucson, Arizona, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Sol Gómez |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Raúl Grijalva (father) |
| Education | University of Arizona (BA) |
| Website | House website Campaign website |
Adelita S. Grijalva (born October 30, 1970)[1] is an American politician who has served as theU.S. representative forArizona's 7th congressional district since November 12, 2025. A member of theDemocratic Party, she previously served as a member of thePima County Board of Supervisors for District 5 from 2021 to 2025 and on theTucson Unified School District Governing Board from 2002 to 2022. She is the daughter of former U.S. representativeRaúl Grijalva, who represented the district from 2003 until his death in 2025.
On September 23, 2025, Grijalva was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives ina special election to succeed her father, defeatingRepublican nominee Daniel Butierez. In a move widely criticized by Democrats, theSpeaker of the House,Mike Johnson, refused to swear her in,[2][3] promising to delay the swearing-in until the end of the2025 United States federal government shutdown, which began the week after she won the special election. She was sworn in on November 12 after a seven-week delay, the longest in congressional history.[4]
Grijalva is a nativeTucsonan, the granddaughter of abracero who came to the United States fromMexico in 1945 and the eldest daughter of her congressional predecessor, former U.S. representativeRaúl Grijalva.[5] She graduated fromPueblo High School in 1989 and theUniversity of Arizona with aBachelor of Arts degree inpolitical science in 1995.[6][7]
Grijalva served as director of the non-profit juvenile diversion program Pima County Teen Court for 25 years.[8]
Grijalva was the youngest woman ever elected to the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board in 2002, serving for 18 years, making her one of the longest-serving TUSD Board members in history.[9][10] In 2008 she received Advocate of the Year from the Arizona School Counselors Association for her tireless advocacy to keep counselors in schools.[9] She voted against firing the co-founder and director of Tucson Unified School District's Mexican American Studies program, and was the only board member who voted against shutting down its Mexican American Studies classes in 2012.[11]
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Grijalva was elected to the Pima County Board of Supervisors in 2020 with 73.60% of the vote.[12] In office, she focused on recovering from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic; centering safety, affordable housing and strong job creation as key to recovery efforts.[13] She served as Chair and Vice-Chair during her time on the board, making a strong commitment to working with community to create a coalition to address the biggest issues facing Pima County, particularly housing people can afford, education, climate, water resiliency, and healthy and safe communities.[10]
Grijalva successfully pushed for the board to open meetings with aland acknowledgement to the indigenousTohono O'odham Nation andPascua Yaqui Tribe.[14] She was appointed chair of the board in 2023, previously serving as vice chair for the two years prior, making her the first femaleLatina to hold the position.[15][16]
Due to Arizona'sresign-to-run law, she announced her resignation from the Board effective April 4, 2025, to run for theU.S. House of Representatives.[7][17]Andrés Cano was appointed by the board to succeed her.[18]
On December 5, 2025, Grijalva waspepper sprayed by anICE agent at the scene of an ICE raid on aMexican restaurant in Tucson. Grijalva said she was making inquiries about the raid and identified herself as a member of Congress, but was still pepper sprayed by a "very aggressive" agent.Department of Homeland Security spokeswomanTricia McLaughlin claimed that Grijalva was "in the vicinity" of a third party who was pepper sprayed for "obstructing and assaulting law enforcement."[19]
On March 31, 2025, Grijalva announced that she was launching a campaign for the seat vacated by the death of her father, longtime U.S. RepresentativeRaúl Grijalva, to pursue the Democratic nomination for Arizona's 7th congressional district in a2025 special election.[7] Grijalva met her signature goal in the first five hours of her congressional campaign, making her the first candidate to appear on the ballot.[20] Grijalva said Congress should be reining in President Donald Trump as he cuts the federal government workforce, claws back grant dollars and guts agencies like the U.S. Department of Education.[7] She criticizes plans for a new copper mine at Oak Flat, a project that refused to consider concerns by the San Carlos Apache Tribe and others that the land was necessary for their ceremonies.[21] She received endorsements from leaders includingBernie Sanders, theCongressional Progressive Caucus, and a number of Tucson City Council members, Pima County Supervisors, and state lawmakers.[22][23][7]
On July 15, 2025, Grijalva won the Democratic primary, defeatingDeja Foxx,Daniel Hernández Jr., and two other lesser known candidates.[24]
On September 23, 2025, Grijalva won the special election by a 2–1 margin, defeatingRepublican Daniel Butierez (whom her father had defeated the previous November),Green Eduardo Quintana, andNo Labels candidateRichard Grayson.[25] She is the first Latina to represent Arizona in Congress.[26]
Grijalva's swearing-in was delayed by50 days, which set a new record for any member who entered the House after winning a special election.[27] The previous record holder, RepresentativeJimmy Gomez who won aspecial election in 2017, requested to delay his swearing in due to family issues he was facing. He was sworn in 35 days after his election victory.[28]
Speaker of the HouseMike Johnson has given various reasons for the delay:
Democrats have criticized the delay as political and specifically motivated by Grijalva's promise to sign thedischarge petition to force a vote on theEpstein Files Transparency Act as her signature would be the 218th signature, which is the minimum number of signatures required for the petition to go into effect and force a vote.[38][39][40][a]
On October 16, Grijalva posted a video to X in which she reported that she had received the keys to her office, but had not received passcodes to her government computers nor a government email address.[37] On the same day that Grijalva posted the video, Johnson responded that he will not swear her in until the government shutdown is over, adding that "she should be working for her constituents. I don't know what she's doing. I keep seeing their political stunt videos, and they're knocking on the door, and she's not there. She should be in her office."[37]
On October 21,Arizona Attorney GeneralKris Mayes, a Democrat, filed a lawsuit against Johnson, seeking to force him to swear in Grijalva under the rationale that the delay is depriving the residents of Grijalva's district of congressional representation. Grijalva joined the lawsuit.[42]
On November 6, Grijalva penned an editorial published byUSA Today in which she criticized Johnson for keeping the House adjourned as a justification to delay her swearing-in.[43]
On September 24, 2025, the day after winning the special election, she announced onMajor Garrett's podcast,The Takeout, that she will run for election to a full term in2026.[44]
Upon her swearing-in, Rep. Grijalva was appointed to the following committees:[45]
Grijalva is a supporter of a single-payerMedicare for All program.[48]
In October 2023, the Pima County Board of Supervisors was presented with two resolutions regarding theGaza war. One motion reaffirmedIsrael'sright to self-defense and stood with their retaliatory efforts, while the other mirrored the same type of language, except showed support for the Palestinian people.[49][50] Although Grijalva attempted to add language around supporting civilians and humanitarian aid, it was "respectfully declined" by Sharon Bronson and Steve Christy, two other Pima County Supervisors.[51]
In a debate with her Republican opponent for the2025 special election, Grijalva accused the Israeli government of committinggenocide against Palestinians in Gaza.[52]
Upon taking office, Grijalva co-sponsored theBlock the Bombs Act, which would halt military aid to Israel.[53]
On December 9, 2025, Grijalva voted in favor of the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025. The act passed overwhelmingly in the chamber, passing in a vote of 399–5.[54] The act extends federal payments to rural counties to support schools, roads, and local services.[55][56]
Grijalva lives in Tucson with her husband Sol Gómez, alibrarian, and their three children.[57]
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Adelita Grijalva | 18,834 | 67.3% | |
| Democratic | Consuelo Hernandez | 9,066 | 32.4% | |
| Write-in | 73 | 0.3% | ||
| Total votes | 27,973 | 100.0% | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Adelita Grijalva | 56,266 | 73.5% | |
| Republican | Fernando Gonzales | 20,179 | 26.3% | |
| Write-in | 143 | 0.2% | ||
| Total votes | 76,588 | 100.0% | ||
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Adelita Grijalva (incumbent) | 19,418 | 99.0% | |
| Write-in | 196 | 1.0% | ||
| Total votes | 19,614 | 100.0% | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Adelita Grijalva (incumbent) | 54,700 | 73.3% | |
| Independent | Val Romero | 19,524 | 26.2% | |
| Write-in | 375 | 0.5% | ||
| Total votes | 74,599 | 100.0% | ||
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Adelita Grijalva | 38,679 | 61.5% | |
| Democratic | Deja Foxx | 14,078 | 22.4% | |
| Democratic | Daniel Hernández Jr. | 8,541 | 13.6% | |
| Democratic | Patrick Harris | 925 | 1.5% | |
| Democratic | Jose Malvido Jr. | 687 | 1.1% | |
| Total votes | 62,910 | 100.0% | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Adelita Grijalva | 70,148 | 68.9% | |
| Republican | Daniel Butierez | 29,944 | 29.4% | |
| Green | Eduardo Quintana | 1,118 | 1.1% | |
| No Labels | Richard Grayson | 537 | 0.5% | |
| Total votes | 101,747 | 100.0% | ||
| Democratichold | ||||
Grijalva: Yes, I'm going to run for reelection.
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| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromArizona's 7th congressional district 2025–present | Incumbent |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded by | United States representatives by seniority 430th | Succeeded by |