Adelita Grijalva vows, as the first Arizona Latina elected to Congress, to not be the last

For the first time in its history, Arizona elected its first Latina and Chicana representative to Congress. Her name is Adelita Grijalva. 

With nearly 70% of the vote, she won the Sept. 23 special election to fill the seat for Arizona’s 7th Congressional District, reflecting its consistent Democratic alignment. 

The seat was left vacant after her late father, Raul Grijalva, died of cancer in March 2025. He’s remembered for his more than 50 years of public service protecting the environment and working-class Americans. 

By stepping into a role no Latina from Arizona has ever held, Adelita Grijalva promised to ensure that Latina voices and perspectives — which have long been left out of Washington — are heard on Capitol Hill. 

“I want to make sure that children that look at me in this position say, ‘If that girl from the south side of Tucson can do it, I can do it too,’” Grijalva said in an interview with CALÓ News. 

‘Nobody handed it to me’

For Grijalva, whose first name is synonymous with the “soldaderas” — a group of courageous women who fought alongside men during the Mexican Revolution in the 1910s — this win is about continuing a fight that her dad started. 

“My dad started a movement and a legacy of being present for his community, standing up for his community and fighting for those people who feel like they're ignored and don't have a voice,” she said. “That's the legacy I carry.” 

Grijalva, a Tucson native, will not only succeed her father in Congress; she has also followed in his footsteps as a public servant, having worked on the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board and the Pima County Board of Supervisors. 

While Grijalva’s victory may not have surprised some, she said that the effort behind it should not be overlooked because of her last name. 

“Nobody handed it to me,” Grijalva said. “We fought for it.” 

Grijalva won the Democratic nomination after a challenging race against Deja Foxx, a 25-year-old activist who mobilized young voters through social media. Then, she competed against Republican candidate Daniel Butierez, a contractor and small business owner.  

Grijalva’s two decades of public service laid the foundation for her leadership in southern Arizona, but it was her campaign work that secured her victory in both Tucson’s Democratic primary and the congressional special election.

Alongside the 1,400 volunteers from her campaign who knocked on 51,000 doors and made 405,000 phone calls, Grijalva prioritized meeting with voters from her district.

“When the majority of people in that district speak Spanish, it’s really important that the person who represents them speaks Spanish as well,” Grijalva said in Spanish.

Breaking the glass ceiling

Grijalva’s win represents more than a continuation of her father’s legacy of Latino representation in Congress; it’s also about breaking a glass ceiling for Latinas in Arizona. 

“I might be the first Latina elected to this position, but I will not be the last,” she said. 

Grijalva will join two Latinos from Arizona and 19 Latinas in Congress to reshape what is debated and decided at Capitol Hill. 

She will bring her perspective as “somebody who has navigated this country, and the state of Arizona, as a Latina… on these axes of both gender and race and the intersection they’re in,” said Kelly Dittmar, the director of research at the Center for American Women and Politics. This organization tracks data about women's political participation in the United States. 

Grijalva said that she plans to carry forward her father’s fight for issues that weigh heavily in the lives of people from District 7, an area that covers most of the Arizona-Mexico border and is home to Indigenous land. These issues include immigration, environmental justice and access to education. Yet, she plans to offer something new to the conversation: a perspective shaped by her identity as a Latina in the fight for reproductive rights in Arizona.

‘Calladitas no nos vemos mas bonitas’

For first-generation college student Dafne Zamora, who’s studying political science at Arizona State University, Grijalva’s victory is a message that Latinas can rise above stereotypes. 

“Calladitas no nos vemos mas bonitas,” Zamora said, referring to a common phrase in Spanish with Latin American roots utilized to reinforce the idea that women’s value comes from being beautiful and obedient, not outspoken.

Beyond a shared identity and gender, Grijalva’s progressive positions on human rights, affordable housing, immigration and reproductive health resonated deeply with Zamora’s values. That alignment is what inspired Zamora to join her campaign, volunteering with Keep Arizona Blue in the West Valley.

Zamora, who grew up in Sunrise, Arizona, has worked to claim her place as a Latina in leadership. She currently works for progressive organizations that support women in politics and Gen-Z voters, Arizona List and Keep Arizona Blue. 

“Seeing someone to look up to gives me courage to do something for the first time,” Zamora said. “Because if she can do it. It gives me faith that I can do it too.”

Nicole Macias Garibay is a transborder storyteller and bilingual journalist from the U.S.-Mexico border. Her upbringing crossing the border on the daily fuels her drive to report on migration, Latino culture and the Hispanic community. She wrote for La Voz-The Arizona Republic, interned at Telemundo Arizona and launched VOCES, a bilingual magazine dedicated to telling stories para la comunidad, por la comunidad.