The AZ Political Podcast

Jim Sharpe sits down with Congressman Andy Biggs with less than two weeks to go until the primary election for Arizona governor. Biggs discusses his campaign strategy, the urgent need to combat Medicare and Medicaid fraud within the state's recovery industry and how he manages to balance a statewide campaign with his duties in D.C. He also shares his Day 1 vision for reaching across the aisle to w...

Seeing Democrats and Republicans work together “really well” — even “collaboratively" —  in an election year , is not only encouraging, but it can also give you faith in our system of government. Too bad that getting to this place politically requires tackling an issue awful enough that it can cause one to lose faith in humanity.   Republican state Senator C...

Will the  second time  be the charm for Marlene Galán-Woods? Will her  second  attempt to win the Democratic nomination in Arizona’s 1st Congressional District (CD-1) lead to her being Arizona’s  second  Latina in Congress? (Adelita Grijalva became the first when she won last year’s special election in CD-7.)    Galán-Woods wo...

Nothing’s more important on Arizona’s political calendar this week than the Republican gubernatorial debate. So much so that not only will KTAR News carry it live on-air and online (at 6 PM Wednesday), doing a preview of the debate on the latest AZ Political Podcast was a no-brainer.    I also didn’t have to use much brain power to pick the guest for this topic: Republi...

Will you get to decide if firing squads will be part of a list prisoners can choose from when they’re executed in Arizona? How do you feel about mail-in voting? Would you vote by mail to enshrine into the Arizona constitution the right to vote by mail?   Those are just a couple of the dozens of examples of what you could be voting on this year. That’s because Arizona is one of a h...

For Republicans. Daniel Keenan is the "Mark Lamb alternative" in Arizona's 5th Congressional District. Keenan joins Jim Sharpe for the AZ Political Podcast where they discuss his reasoning to run for office, his background, and the recent Mark Lamb controversy.

Do Andy Biggs' connections in Washington and Mexico make him a good candidate for Arizona's top job? Joining the AZ Political Podcast is Rep Andy Biggs who says he will use these connections to improve relations with our southern neighbor. 

Will Arizona's 1st congressional district seat flip democratic in the July 21 primary? Chuck Coughlin joins the AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to discuss what he says will be a very interesting race. 

Technology executive John Trobough joins The AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to discuss his run for Congress in Arizona's 1st District. He breaks down his views on artificial intelligence, data privacy, and how he plans to apply his tech background to legislation on Capitol Hill.

If he was already governor, Republican Congressman David Schweikert says he might not have signed the Republican budget that Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs just vetoed. Schweikert joined Jim Sharpe to discuss his race for Governor.

Former Undersecretary for Intelligence at the Department of Homeland Security John Cohen joins the AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to discuss how rhetoric is leading to political violence ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. 

Pollster Mike Noble dives into why Republican Congressman David Schweikert should suspend his campaign for governor, endorse fellow Congressman Andy Biggs, and ask for the lieutenant governor nomination. Schweikert should do all this in order to save the GOP’s chances of wresting the Governor’s office from Democrat Katie Hobbs.

The mayor of Surprise, AZ joins the Arizona Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe this week. Kevin Sartor goes in depth on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility coming to his city. 

Congressman Greg Stanton joins the AZ Political Podcast at what he calls an “incredibly serious moment” in American history. Stanton reacts to President Trump’s actions toward Iran, calling the situation an unauthorized war and warning that threats of total destruction are reckless and unacceptable.

S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Arizona, talks tight elections, Department of Homeland Security funding negotiations, and bringing both parties together for Arizona's water future. He's this week's guest on the AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe.

Howie Fischer, chief correspondent for Arizona’s Capitol Media Services, joined the AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to share his thoughts on how Governor Hobbs and the Legislature will or won't work together this session, things he never expected to see, and the biggest change he's seen at the state level politically. 

Political analyst and host of the "ChuckTodd-Cast", Chuck Todd, joined the AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to give us his thoughts on the conflict with Iran, how the national midterms are shaping up, and who has the best shot at Arizona governor.

Former Undersecretary for Intelligence at the Department of Homeland Security John Cohen joins the AZ Political Podcast with Jim Sharpe to discuss a potential increase in terror threats due to the continuing conflict with Iran.  

Democratic Political Strategist Stacy Pearson and Republican Political Strategist Stan Barnes sit down with Jim Sharpe to discuss President Donald Trump's State of the Union Address. 

The deaths of Rebekah Baptiste, Emily Pike and Zariah Dodd in 2025 drew severe scrutiny to the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS). Jim Sharpe sat down this week with Sen. Carine Werner to discuss her office's investigation into the department and proposed legislation aimed to prevent and better serve children within the DCS system.

Public school advocate Beth Lewis discusses a new proposal that could appear on Arizona ballots in November that would place new guidelines on the ESA program. 

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes says what happened in Fulton County, Georgia ( FBI agents seizing ballots and documents from the 2020 election ) can’t happen in Arizona — at least not in the same way. 

On this week's episode of the AZ Political Podcast, John Cohen, a former high-ranking Homeland Security official, sits down with Jim Sharpe to talk about all the recent immigration news. During the episode, Cohen says that federal immigration operations conducted elsewhere are negatively affecting efforts in Arizona to capture dangerous criminals residing illegally in the U.S. — and are hurt...

Noble Predictive Insights CEO Mike Noble breaks down his Arizona Power Rankings, which are based on a formula designed to gauge electability. 

Former Arizona Cardinals kicker Jay Feely discusses his run for Arizona's 1st Congressional District seat and why he jumped into the race after originally declaring his candidacy for another district.