A Democratic challenger in a battleground Arizona district raised over $2 million in the first quarter of the year, an eye-popping haul that suggested donors are bullish about Democrats’ chances of taking the House.
JoAnna Mendoza, a Marine veteran challenging GOP Rep. Juan Ciscomani in Arizona’s 6th District, says she raised over $2.3 million in the first quarter of 2026. The massive haul, shared first with POLITICO, is the latest sign the district based around Tucson’s suburbs and the southeast Arizona desert could pose a headache for Republicans as they seek to maintain control of Congress.
“That number shows that we’re not playing around, that we’re serious and that we’re doing the work,” Mendoza said in an interview Thursday.
The district is considered one of the most competitive on the map this year, and Democrats have carried it in recent statewide elections. Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego won the district in 2024, as did Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs and Sen. Mark Kelly in 2022.
House Democrats see the district — which President Donald Trump narrowly won two years ago, according to calculations from The Downballot — as one of its dozen top targets to flip.
Ciscomani, a former senior adviser to then-Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey and vice chair of the Arizona-Mexico Commission, has served in Congress since 2023. Ciscomani won the district in 2022 by fewer than 6,000 votes, becoming the first naturalized citizen from Mexico elected to Congress in Arizona history.
Ciscomani’s campaign did not return a request for comment. His first quarter fundraising total has not been released.
Mendoza’s campaign did not provide a cash on hand total. Mendoza finished 2025 with $1.5 million on hand, while Ciscomani had over $3.1 million.
Mendoza’s total is among the highest reported by a Democratic House challenger this quarter. Christina Bohannan, running to unseat Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks in Iowa’s 1st District, also reported raising $2 million.
Nationally, the two committees fighting for control over the House — the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee — have roughly equaled each other in fundraising. But a looming Supreme Court decision that could empower parties and their affiliated committees to directly coordinate with campaigns could bolster Republicans.
Democrats see a string of off-cycle victories as a sign the tide could turn ahead of November’s midterms.
“What we’re seeing right now is an electorate and a donor base that is frustrated with the state of our nation and our country, and they’re doing something about it,” Mendoza said. “They’re stepping up in whatever way they can.”
Read the full article here