Voters in Arizona will determine next week whether they’re ready to send the first Gen Z woman to Congress when they head to the polls to vote in the Democratic primary for the 7th Congressional District special election.
Deja Foxx, 25, a social media influencer and reproductive rights advocate, got her first taste for politics at sixteen when she went viral for confronting GOP Senator Jeff Flake. But she sees herself as battle-tested for the new political landscape.
“I have a decade of advocacy experience, and right now, it is clear that Democrats don’t know how to fight back. I intend to stand up to Republicans and show Democrats what it looks like,” she told the Daily Beast.
Foxx is one of a handful of candidates running to fill the seat left vacant by late Rep. Raúl Grijalva, who represented Arizona for more than 20 years.
Her opponents include former state lawmaker Daniel Hernandez and Adelita Grijalva, daughter of the late congressman and a former Pima County Board of Supervisors member, who is seen as the frontrunner in the race.
But a recent poll showed Foxx surged 25 percentage points in just over a month to 35 percent, putting her within striking distance of Grijalva.
She has the backing of David Hogg, the gun control advocate and recently exited DNC official, who has upset party leaders with his plan to help candidates challenge longtime Democratic incumbents in primaries. He is headed to Arizona to campaign with her Friday night.
Hogg has argued Foxx is what Congress needs, not only because of her age but because of her lived experience, which he said in a video, “far too many members of Congress can only pretend to know.”
He has pointed to Zohran Mamdani’s upset victory in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary and noted Foxx has been closing the polling gap in a similar fashion.
The party has been grappling with criticism as older lawmakers attempt to hold onto power. Foxx is one of several younger Democrats who have launched bids for Congress, calling for change in Washington.
“We have failed to have a hard conversation about age in this party. We have failed to build a new generation of leadership, and it has real consequences for families like mine who are left holding the bag,” Foxx said.
While the Arizona primary could not be further away from the concrete jungle, the results along the border with Mexico will still shed more light on where the party is headed as voters decide whether to elect a new generation. Foxx also sees some parallels with the New York race.
“This race has always been about predictability versus possibility,” she said. “I’m running against somebody who has a legacy last name, who is branded the obvious choice, and had electeds lining up for endorsements right out of the gate.”
In just one week, she recently clocked in more than 1,200 miles of driving as she met with people across the district. She claimed her candidacy has been met with enthusiasm by people of all ages, but she has seen a particular surge in activity among young people despite the July heat, when engagement is generally expected to be low.
Foxx pointed to her campaign’s social media strategy, which gained her around 30 million views in 30 days on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook. She insisted it is “not supposed to happen in a special election primary buried in the middle of summer on an off year in Arizona.”
“I wasn’t born on a path to Congress. I grew up relying on food stamps, Medicaid and Section Eight housing. It’s everything that Republicans are trying to cut in real time, and the difference between me and them is that I have lived what they debate in DC,” Foxx said.
While the lines in the race are more blurred between the establishment and progressives, a stark divide remains amid the debate taking place nationwide about the party’s future.
“It is a case study that will change the kind of candidate that is recruited, funded, and endorsed all across the country in the 2026 midterms,” Foxx said of the race.
Grijalva, 54, has the backing of prominent figures ranging across the Democratic spectrum from Arizona Senator Mark Kelly to Senator Bernie Sanders. She has pushed back on being dubbed “establishment” despite her long experience in local politics, name recognition advantage and close party ties.
Hernandez, 35, is a gun control and LGBTQ advocate who has touted his fight for the state’s working class. He’s backed by centrist New York Rep. Ritchie Torres.
Whoever wins the special election primary is considered a shoo-in to join Congress later this year, as the district is considered a Democratic stronghold. Whoever wins will face off in the Sept. 23 general election.
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