The AZ Political Podcast

KTAR News 92.3
  • 4.0 (2)
  • Politics
  • Updated Weekly

The AZ Political Podcast takes a look at the latest news and state of politics in Arizona. KTAR News' Jim Sharpe, also host of Arizona's Morning News, speaks with newsmakers each week plus gives his insight. 

  1. 11h ago

    Stacey Pearson, co founder of Lumen Strategies

    Will you get to decide if firing squads will be part of a list prisoners can choose from when they’re executed in Arizona? How do you feel about mail-in voting? Would you vote by mail to enshrine into the Arizona constitution the right to vote by mail?   Those are just a couple of the dozens of examples of what you could be voting on this year. That’s because Arizona is one of a handful of states where you get to be a quasi-legislator and partake in direct democracy by creating (or rejecting) laws in the voting booth.    On this week’s AZ Political Podcast, I get to talk with political consultant Stacy Pearson of Lumen Strategies not only about the ballot measures you could see this fall, but also the four types of ways they end up on ballots: two that are initiated by citizens and two that are referred by the Legislature to voters.    Stacy’s firm is engaged in trying to get an initiative called the “Constitutional Right to Early and Mail-in Voting Amendment” on Arizona’s ballot and there are some big hurdles to get there: State law requires that almost 384,000 signatures need to be gathered (and tens of thousands of extras to make up for those ineligible to sign) and submitted by July 2. And there are potential legal challenges to the signatures as well as challenges to the wording of the initiative.   Whew! It takes a lot of initiative to get an initiative in front of voters.   We also discuss what happens when two opposing ballot measures pass; how it’s possible for two similar ballot measures to split the vote and both fail; and the electoral track record of ballot measures.    Initiatives and referendums make for fascinating politics because it’s voters making government “of the people” and “by the people” by bringing “power to the people” to create law.

    27 min

  2. Jun 3

    Daniel Keenan, Republican candidate for Arizona's 5th Congressional District (CD-5)

    For Republicans. Daniel Keenan is the "Mark Lamb alternative" in Arizona's 5th Congressional District. Keenan joins Jim Sharpe for the AZ Political Podcast where they discuss his reasoning to run for office, his background, and the recent Mark Lamb controversy.

    24 min

  3. May 26

    Andy Biggs, US representative and candidate for AZ Governor

    Do Andy Biggs' connections in Washington and Mexico make him a good candidate for Arizona's top job? Joining the AZ Political Podcast is Rep Andy Biggs who says he will use these connections to improve relations with our southern neighbor.

    28 min

  4. May 21

    Chuck Coughlin, president and CEO of High Ground Consulting

    Will Arizona's 1st congressional district seat flip democratic in the July 21 primary? Chuck Coughlin joins the AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to discuss what he says will be a very interesting race.

    33 min

  5. May 12

    John Trobough, candidate for Arizona's 1st congressional district

    Technology executive John Trobough joins The AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to discuss his run for Congress in Arizona's 1st District. He breaks down his views on artificial intelligence, data privacy, and how he plans to apply his tech background to legislation on Capitol Hill.

    32 min

  6. May 7

    David Schweikert, U.S. representative and candidate for Arizona Governor

    If he was already governor, Republican Congressman David Schweikert says he might not have signed the Republican budget that Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs just vetoed. Schweikert joined Jim Sharpe to discuss his race for Governor.

    29 min

  7. Apr 30

    John Cohen, Former Undersecretary for Intelligence at DHS

    Former Undersecretary for Intelligence at the Department of Homeland Security John Cohen joins the AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to discuss how rhetoric is leading to political violence ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

    23 min

  8. Apr 23

    Mike Noble, CEO of Noble Predictive Insights

    Pollster Mike Noble dives into why Republican Congressman David Schweikert should suspend his campaign for governor, endorse fellow Congressman Andy Biggs, and ask for the lieutenant governor nomination. Schweikert should do all this in order to save the GOP’s chances of wresting the Governor’s office from Democrat Katie Hobbs.

    27 min
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Ratings & Reviews

4
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

The AZ Political Podcast takes a look at the latest news and state of politics in Arizona. KTAR News' Jim Sharpe, also host of Arizona's Morning News, speaks with newsmakers each week plus gives his insight. 

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