2014 Arizona gubernatorial election

The 2014 Arizona gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 2014, to elect the Governor of Arizona, concurrently with elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

Incumbent Republican Governor Jan Brewer was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a second consecutive full term in office. After a bitter six-candidate primary, Republicans nominated Arizona State Treasurer Doug Ducey; Democrat Fred DuVal, the former chairman of the Arizona Board of Regents, won his party's nomination unopposed. Ducey won the election with 53% of the vote. This election marked the first time since 1994 that no female gubernatorial candidate was on the ballot and that a man was elected governor of Arizona. This was the first open seat gubernatorial election in the state since 2002.

Background
Democratic Governor Janet Napolitano resigned on January 21, 2009, to be sworn in as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Since Arizona does not have a lieutenant governor, Secretary of State Jan Brewer was first in the state's gubernatorial line of succession and was sworn in as governor on the same day. She was elected to a full term in 2010, defeating Democrat Terry Goddard, the Arizona Attorney General, by 54% to 42%.

Brewer was term-limited in 2014, despite only serving one full term. This is because Arizona state law limits office holders to two consecutive terms regardless of whether they serve full or partial terms. In November 2012, Brewer declared she was looking into what she called "ambiguity" in Arizona's term-limit law to seek a third term. In February 2014, Brewer reiterated that she was considering running for re-election, but on March 12, 2014, she announced that she would not attempt to seek another term in office, which would have required what The Arizona Republic called a "long-shot court challenge".

Republican primary
The Republican primary campaign was widely characterised as being "bitter" and "nasty"   and the $16.2 million spent by the six Republican candidates means that the 2014 election has already broken the record for most expensive gubernatorial race in state history, exceeding the 2002 election in which $9.2 million was spent during the primary and general election campaigns combined.

Declared

 * Ken Bennett, Secretary of State of Arizona
 * Doug Ducey, State Treasurer of Arizona
 * Christine Jones, former executive vice president, General Counsel and corporate secretary for Go Daddy
 * Frank Riggs, former U.S. Representative from California and candidate for the U.S. Senate from California in 1998
 * Scott Smith, Mayor of Mesa
 * Andrew Thomas, former County attorney of Maricopa County, disbarred lawyer, and candidate for Arizona Attorney General in 2010

Withdrew

 * Hugh Hallman, former mayor of Tempe (ran for state treasurer and lost)
 * Al Melvin, state senator
 * John Molina, OB/GYN and former CEO of Phoenix Indian Medical Center

Declined

 * Joe Arpaio, Sheriff of Maricopa County
 * Jan Brewer, incumbent governor
 * Brenda Burns, Corporation Commissioner
 * Wil Cardon, businessman and candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2012 (ran for Secretary of State and lost)
 * Tom Horne, Attorney General of Arizona (ran for re-election and lost)
 * Martha McSally, retired United States Air Force colonel and nominee for Arizona's 2nd congressional district in 2012 (ran for AZ-02 and won)
 * Steve Pierce, state senator
 * Steven Seagal, actor and reserve deputy sheriff

Declared

 * Fred DuVal, former chairman of the Arizona Board of Regents

Withdrew

 * Ronald Cavanaugh, Libertarian candidate for governor in 2010

Declined

 * Chad Campbell, Minority Leader of the Arizona House of Representatives
 * Richard Carmona, former Surgeon General and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2012
 * Neil Giuliano, former mayor of Tempe
 * Terry Goddard, former Arizona Attorney General, candidate for governor in 1994 and nominee for governor in 1990 and 2010 (ran for Secretary of State and lost)
 * Marco A. López Jr., former chief of staff for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and former mayor of Nogales
 * Janet Napolitano, president of the University of California, former secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and former governor of Arizona
 * Felecia Rotellini, attorney and nominee for Arizona Attorney General in 2010 (ran for Attorney General and lost)
 * Greg Stanton, Mayor of Phoenix

Declared

 * Brian Bailey (independent write-in candidate), Arizona Army National Guardsman
 * Cary Dolego (independent), write-in candidate for governor in 2010
 * Barry Hess (Libertarian Party), perennial candidate
 * Joseph James "J." Johnson (unaffiliated write-in candidate), food account manager and brother of Eddie Johnson
 * John Lewis Mealer (Americans Elect), candidate for the Americans Elect nomination for president in 2012
 * Alice Novoa (Republican write-in candidate)
 * Diana-Elizabeth Ramseys Rasmussen Kennedy (Independent write-in candidate)
 * Curtis Woolsey (unaffiliated write-in candidate)

Debates

 * Complete video of debate, September 10, 2014 – C-SPAN
 * Complete video of debate, September 29, 2014 – C-SPAN

Polling

 * With Bennett


 * With Jones


 * With Melvin


 * With Molina


 * With Riggs


 * With Smith


 * With Thomas

Results by congressional districts
Ducey won 6 of the 9 congressional districts, including one that elected a Democrat.