Republican Daniel Butierez and Democrat Adelita Grijalva faced off Tuesday during a debate as they seek to fill an empty seat in Arizona’s Congressional District 7.
The debate, which was civil throughout and offered no surprises, opened with a question about immigration enforcement. The candidates then spent the first third of the hour staking their differing positions on border and immigration issues.
Grijalva said Immigration and Customs Enforcement was “using inhumane tactics” and “targeting anyone who looks like me.” She said she was frightened about ICE’s ballooning budget, and noted the economic boost that migrants give to Arizona and the country.
“We should all be very afraid,” Grijalva said about ICE’s skirting of due process and targeting of people including U.S. citizens.
Butierez, meanwhile, said, ICE agents are doing what the law requires them to do. “The rules aren’t changing, the laws are being enforced,” Butierez said.
Butierez claimed — incorrectly — that unauthorized immigration is “costing trillions of dollars.” He advocated for detaining and deporting all migrants who have come into the country without authorization over the past four years. The moderator challenged Butierez about whether or not he supports arresting asylum seekers who show up to court. He said he was not that familiar with the issue and was mostly going on secondhand information.
Grijalva countered, saying she would sign the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act to make schools, courts, hospitals and churches off-limits from immigration enforcement operations.
On the border wall, Butierez supported it and Grijalva advocated for assessing environmental needs and conducting impact studies. She said the wall would be “an incredible cost” and not be effective at deterring migrants.
Grijalva said that drug enforcement should be focused on consumers and prevention.
Shifting to the proposed mining operation on Oak Flat, Butierez said he would be for safeguards but ultimately supports mining.
Grijalva, meanwhile, wanted Congress to intervene. She called Oak Flat a sacred site and pointed to the 1872 mining law, calling for modernization and reform. She noted that many of the mining companies are foreign, which Butierez also said was a problem.
Butierez said that mining was inevitable, especially due to the high mineral demand of electric cars.
Speaking with the press after the debate, both candidates addressed Project Blue, the proposed massive data center that has been a point of tension and intrigue all summer. Butierez said he was against the secretiveness around the project and said it seems like it will go forward despite the Tucson City Council rejecting the project earlier this month.
Grijalva said there should be federal regulations for data centers, as well as artificial intelligence. Asked if she would intervene if Project Blue were to go forward despite Tucson’s rejection, she said, “If I can, I would.”
The candidates also touched on Gaza and Ukraine. They both supported ongoing support of the Ukrainian fight against the Russian invasion. On Gaza, they staked opposite positions. “I stand with Israel,” Butierez said. While calling out rising Islamophobia and rising antisemitism, Grijalva issued an “unequivocal condemnation” of Israel’s tactics in Gaza and called it a genocide.
The tension rose briefly when the candidates discussed education. Grijalva defended her legacy on Tucson Unified School District’s school board and condemned the voucher system. She called for the federal government setting the bar in education funding and local districts and states supplementing.
Butierez advocated against any federal role in education and praised school choice. He said the reason so many parents were seeking charter and private schools was because the public system was indoctrinating them.
“America is hurting right now,” Grijalva said. She said young voters have never experienced a functioning democracy. She said she did not believe term limits is the solution. “It’s difficult to negotiate with extremists,” she added. “I am going to be a voice for Southern Arizona. I am beholden to the people of this community.”
“My passion is to help the homeless,” Butierez said, explaining why he decided to run. “It’s become a crisis. I’m running because I am the person who can help our homeless.”
The special election will decide who fills the the U.S. House seat left vacant after longtime Rep. Raúl Grijalva’s death in March. The general election is set for Sept. 23, with the winner serving through 2026. Representatives are normally elected to two-year terms.
This is the first open race in the district in more than two decades. U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva, a Democrat, had represented the area since 2003 before he died in March at age 77 from complications related to lung-cancer treatment. Adelita Grijalva is his daughter.
District 7 stretches along the U.S.-México border and includes parts of six counties: Pima, Santa Cruz, Yuma, Cochise, Maricopa and Pinal as well as four sovereign tribal nations: the Cocopah, Pascua Yaqui, Quechan and Tohono O’odham. Not sure if you live in District 7? Check here.
The district is 60% Hispanic. As of April, 40% of voters in the district are registered Democrats, 37% are independents, 21% are Republicans, and 2% belong to other political parties.
Watch the video replay of the debate:
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