DNC pours $1.5M into Arizona Democratic Party as Republicans convene in Milwaukee

The Arizona Democratic Party will get a $1.5 million cash infusion from the Democratic National Committee, the party announced Monday.

The money is part of a $15 million investment from the DNC to state parties in presidential battlegrounds including Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Arizona.

“We all know that the road to the White House and the Senate majority and House majority, it all runs through Arizona,” state Democratic Party chair Yolanda Bejarano told The Arizona Republic. “Every single day will count.”

Arizona Democrats will use the cash to develop advertising and hire staff, Bejarano said.

Right now, Democrats have 80 staffers working in Arizona, according to the DNC. The party’s biggest goal is to talk to voters and make sure they understand the contrasts between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

“We are going to be talking to people about what the Republicans are trying to do to our abortion rights, what they're trying to do to our democracy, what they are trying to do to our immigrants,” Bejarano said, sharing details about which topics the ads will address.

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The state party has not decided whether those ads will run on television or digital platforms, and Bejarano did not share how many organizers she is aiming to hire.

The presidential election came down to fewer than 11,000 votes in Arizona four years ago and was Biden’s narrowest victory in any state. The president’s win here was hotly contested by Republicans — led by Trump — despite no evidence of widespread election fraud. Trump has not committed to accepting the 2024 election results this time around.

This cycle, polls show Biden falling behind the Republican former president. Biden has even faced calls from some members of Congress from Arizona to exit the race in light of his debate stage stumble in June. Despite those new challenges for Democrats, Bejarano said her calculus remains the same heading into Election Day.

“We've always known that this is going to be a tough race, that it was going to be close. So we're going to continue to do the work about the danger that Trump poses for us, and we're going to just keep our head down and focus on talking to voters,” Bejarano said.

Across the country, Democrats say they have 217 field offices and 1,100 staffers in the battleground states.

The Democratic Party’s announcement comes as the Republican National Convention convenes in Milwaukee. DNC Chair Jaime Harrison contrasted Biden and Trump in a statement praising the financial investment.

“As MAGA Republicans descend on Milwaukee to nominate a serial liar, cheater, and convicted felon in Donald Trump, Democrats are leaving nothing to chance and investing heavily in the state of Arizona to ensure Joe Biden and Kamala Harris win this election,” Harrison said in a written statement.

On the Republican side of the aisle, the Trump campaign says it has six offices in Casa Grande, Kingman, East Valley, Scottsdale, West Valley and Tucson. The campaign did not say how many staffers it has in the state.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: DNC gives $1.5m cash infusion to Arizona Dems ahead of November