Arizona has long been a solidly “red” state. Two of its most famous senators, Barry Goldwater and John McCain, were Republican nominees for president, and in more than seven decades, just one Democratic candidate for the White House has won the south-western state.
But Democrats are increasingly confident that a coalition of moderate suburban voters and young, progressive Latinos will help Joe Biden become the first Democrat to carry Arizona since Bill Clinton eked out a narrow victory there in 1996.
Donald Trump, who won the state’s 11 Electoral College votes by a 3.5-point margin in 2016 over Hillary Clinton, has seen his national approval ratings dip over his handling of coronavirus, which has become a full-blown public health crisis in Arizona in recent weeks.
READ ALSO: Trump-Biden Chaotic First Debate Descends Into Bickering
The state, which has about 7m people, has reported nearly 150,000 Covid-19 cases, with the number of infections, hospitalisations and deaths spiking this month.
At the same time, Democrats have invested heavily in the state, whose demographics increasingly favour the party. Arizona has had an influx of Latino immigrants, as well as people from other parts of the US, including the more left-leaning state of California, in recent years.
Mr Biden’s long friendship with the late McCain is also helping him with Arizona voters.
With just over three months to go until election day, the former vice-president leads Mr Trump in Arizona by nearly 3 points, according to the Real Clear Politics polling average.
“I am very confident,” said Ruben Gallego, a Democratic congressman who represents a district that includes parts of Phoenix, the state capital.
“What I see right now is, really, for the first time in the history of Arizona, a campaign that is fully dedicated to turning the state blue.”
READ ALSO:Oil market outlook: What Trump or Biden presidency means for Nigeria
The Biden team has announced a string of hires in the state and rolled out a multimillion-dollar English- and Spanish-language advertising campaign. Priorities USA, the Democratic super PAC, has spent more than $1m there this month alone, including on a digital ad campaign featuring a Republican Latino voter who is planning on backing Mr Biden.
Nuestro PAC, a group set up by former Bernie Sanders advisers to target Latino voters, is focusing its early efforts in the state. Latinos make up nearly a third of Arizona’s population and skew younger and more progressive than in other states
