By AZ Capitol Times
Key Points:
- Two Republican congressmen with near-identical records will go head-to-head in the July 21 gubernatorial primary
- Biggs wants to eliminate income taxes, Schweikert prefers business recruitment
- Schweikert breaks with Biggs on water resources, mail-in voting and DACA deportations
With early ballots already making their way to mailboxes ahead of the July 21 primary, Republicans and independents will soon have a choice to make between two GOP candidates aiming to be Arizona’s next governor.
Congressman Andy Biggs, the frontrunner, and Congressman David Schweikert, the underdog, have nearly identical voting records from their overlapping time in the U.S. House of Representatives. Yet while the two boast similar conservative bona fides, they have begun to show some differences in their plans for their would-be administrations and their paths to victory.
Biggs seems to have almost unanimous backing from the state’s conservative flank, but Schweikert maintains that he will be more palatable to the independent voters who truly decide the outcome of elections in Arizona. While Biggs attempted to demonstrate his ability to work across the aisle during a Republican gubernatorial debate, he continues to tout his close relationships with President Donald Trump and Turning Point USA — something Schweikert argues is a liability.
