District: AZ-02
Cook Political Ranking: Likely R
Performance Voter Index: R+7
Jonathan Nez is running for Congress in Arizona’s 2nd congressional district. He was born in Tuba City and grew up in Shonto, both in the Navajo Nation. He is a member of the Navajo Nation (Diné) tribe. He served as Vice President of the Navajo Nation from 2015 to 2019. In 2019, he was elected President and served one term. This will be Nez’s second time running for AZ-02; in 2024, he challenged and was ultimately defeated by then-first-term incumbent Rep. Eli Crane.

Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District encompasses most of northeastern Arizona. It is largely rural but includes the communities of Flagstaff, Sedona, Prescott, and Prescott Valley. Within those areas are 14 of Arizona’s 22 tribes, including the Navajo Nation. Ahead of the 2022 race, this district changed drastically under the redistricting process and forced Democratic incumbent Tom O’Halleran (D-AZ-01) into a red district. The newly renumbered AZ-02 seat was numbered AZ-01 under the old lines. Under the old district lines, in 2020, President Biden won the district by 1.8 points; however, after redistricting, former President Trump won this district in 2024 by nearly 15 points under the new lines. In 2022, then Republican challenger Crane beat former AZ-01 incumbent Rep. O’Halleran (D) by 7 points. In 2024, the race for Arizona’s 2nd saw nearly $1 million in outside spending, with Nez raising $5.4 million and Republican challenger Rep. Crane raising $8.4 million. This cycle, Nez has been included in the DCCC’s Red to Blue program.