District: AZ-06
Cook Political Ranking: Toss Up
Performance Voter Index: EVEN
V4P PAC endorsed candidate.JoAnna Mendoza is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran running for Congress in Arizona’s 6th district. Raised in Pinal County, Mendoza grew up in a farmworker family, experiencing firsthand the challenges of poverty in a rural area. She decided to answer the call to serve at 17, beginning in the U.S. Navy before embarking on a 20-year career in the Marine Corps. She served as a Drill Instructor and was deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan. After retiring from the military, Mendoza returned back to Pinal county to raise her son. She has continued her service as a nonprofit leader, veterans’ advocate, and policy expert working to help families access benefits and ensure rural and underserved communities have a voice. Mendoza is running for Congress to fight to lower costs, expand health care and education, protect Social Security and veterans’ benefits, tackle water and climate challenges, and defend democracy and equal rights for all.

Arizona’s 6th Congressional District is based in the southeast part of the state and includes portions of the cities of Tucson and Casa Grande. Ahead of the 2022 race, this district changed substantially under the redistricting process. The newly renumbered AZ-06 seat, numbered AZ-02 under the old lines, is currently held by GOP Rep. Juan Ciscomani. Through redistricting, the seat became significantly more red. Under the old district lines, in 2020, President Biden won the district by less than one point; however, in 2024, Trump won the district by nearly one point under the new lines. While it is an overwhelmingly white district, there is a significant Latinx population present as well. In 2024, the race for AZ-06 saw more than $20 million in outside spending, with Democratic candidate Kristen Engel raising more than $8 million and Rep.Ciscomani raising $6.3 million. In 2026, Mendoza is challenging incumbent Rep. Ciscomani, and the DCCC has included Mendoza in its Red to Blue program.