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Hank Stephenson

Hank Stephenson

Hank Stephenson used to cover Arizona politics for lobbyists and insiders. In 2021, he started the Arizona Agenda for everyone else. Since then, he helped launch the Tucson Agenda to ensure Southern Arizona politicians don’t go unwatched. He also co-founded Skywolf, which builds legislative intelligence tools for those unfortunate souls who have to follow the Capitol for a living. He’s been covering Arizona for nearly 20 years, including for The New York Times, Politico Magazine and Columbia Journalism Review. But he's a community reporter at heart — he started out bouncing around small-town papers from Nogales to North Dakota. He enjoys political gossip, public records and comeuppances. Contact: [email protected]

Arizona’s new rulebook

Sep 14, 2026

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8 min read

Arizona’s new rulebook

The state’s new terms and conditions ... Tourism dollars, at any cost ... And that 9/11 plane was actually a missile?

Nicole Ludden
Hank Stephenson
Nicole Ludden, +1
Q&A: Chandler’s next mayor

Sep 8, 2026

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10 min read

Q&A: Chandler’s next mayor

Meet Matt Orlando, longtime mustache owner ... Post-primary scrubbing underway ... And "not credible," you say?

TJ L'Heureux
Hank Stephenson
TJ L'Heureux, +1
Corralling the candidates

Sep 3, 2026

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5 min read

Corralling the candidates

What would Charlie do? ... Getting schooled on campaign laws ... And this time, it's clear.

Hank Stephenson
TJ L'Heureux
Hank Stephenson, +1
Ghosts of election fraud past

Sep 2, 2026

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8 min read

Ghosts of election fraud past

The GOP's candidates with baggage ... Why even have campaign finance laws? ... And they just want the gold.

TJ L'Heureux
Hank Stephenson
TJ L'Heureux, +1
SRP’s political ‘slush fund’

Aug 25, 2026

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8 min read

SRP’s political ‘slush fund’

So that’s where your bill goes ... NYT: Arizona's end is nigh ... And the politician and the bar stool.

TJ L'Heureux
Hank Stephenson
TJ L'Heureux, +1
The dairy farmer and the defector

Aug 18, 2026

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6 min read

The dairy farmer and the defector

One heartbeat away from a real job ... One debate down, many to go ... And brutal, but honest.

Hank Stephenson
Hank Stephenson
Happy summer, readers!

Jul 28, 2026

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1 min read

Happy summer, readers!

We're taking a little beach time. BRB.

Hank Stephenson
Hank Stephenson
Republicans love the media agenda

May 26, 2026

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7 min read

Republicans love the media agenda

Who would have guessed? ... A Heap of bogus complaints ... And that horned weirdo is growing on us.

Hank Stephenson
Hank Stephenson
Debates season is upon us

Apr 28, 2026

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6 min read

Debates season is upon us

Are you as stoked as we are? ... Hobbs is in trouble ... And we love it when they fight.

Hank Stephenson
Hank Stephenson
Your next governor has baggage

Apr 3, 2026

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12 min read

Your next governor has baggage

In the spirit of Easter, we’re resurrecting the political histories of Hobbs, Biggs and Schweikert.

Hank Stephenson
Nicole Ludden
Hank Stephenson, +1
Arizona’s top 10 most hated bills

Apr 1, 2026

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16 min read

Arizona’s top 10 most hated bills

Number 1 is not what you expected ... Donald is coming to town ... And the lawsuit that won’t quit.

Hank Stephenson
Hank Stephenson
The field so far

Mar 27, 2026

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15 min read

The field so far

Your new list of lawmakers ... Flock the voters ... And airports have the best people watching.

Hank Stephenson
Hank Stephenson
Our next big thing

Mar 26, 2026

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12 min read

Our next big thing

Just call us debates central ... No se puede ... And the “wacky” system that lets murderers go free.

Hank Stephenson
Hank Stephenson
What is dead may never die

Mar 3, 2026

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10 min read

What is dead may never die

You can't count to 31 on your fingers ... Nobody likes creepy Tom ... And pimp Feely's ride.

Hank Stephenson
Hank Stephenson
Funded to fail

Feb 10, 2026

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15 min read

Funded to fail

Making a lot of mouth noises ... Them’s fighting words ... And why not a billion?

Hank Stephenson
TJ L'Heureux
Gary Grado
Hank Stephenson, +2
Republicans love public records

Feb 5, 2026

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12 min read

Republicans love public records

Now you want transparency? ... Illegal orders are free speech, too ... And say those names fast.

TJ L'Heureux
Hank Stephenson
TJ L'Heureux, +1
Oh Snap: The GOP’s SNAP plan

Feb 4, 2026

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12 min read

Oh Snap: The GOP’s SNAP plan

Audits over appetites ... She’s running for all the offices ... And Abe Hamadeh: conspiracy stopper.

Nicole Ludden
Hank Stephenson
Nicole Ludden, +1
Tempe council cave interviews

Feb 3, 2026

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15 min read

Tempe council cave interviews

An unlikely talk show host ... Janet is back ... And we support Jake Hoffman's stupid bill.

Hank Stephenson
TJ L'Heureux
Hank Stephenson, +1
The stories behind the signs

Feb 2, 2026

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15 min read

The stories behind the signs

Why they showed up ... Warehousing humans ... And Beat It.

Hank Stephenson
Nicole Ludden
Hank Stephenson, +1
Republicans take on the cops

Jan 30, 2026

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16 min read

Republicans take on the cops

But not the surveillance state ... Welp, guess he quit ... And feed those birds, not those birds.

Hank Stephenson
Curt Prendergast
TJ L'Heureux
Hank Stephenson, +2
Swoboda’s grand exit

Jan 26, 2026

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13 min read

Swoboda’s grand exit

New chair, same civil war ... FAFO is the new thoughts and prayers ... And that's not the resignation they were looking for.

Hank Stephenson
Nicole Ludden
Hank Stephenson, +1
Play it safe, or guns blazing?

Jan 23, 2026

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12 min read

Play it safe, or guns blazing?

As ICE squads come to Phoenix, Gov. Katie Hobbs and AG Kris Mayes take vastly different approaches.

Hank Stephenson
Curt Prendergast
Hank Stephenson, +1
An inside look at outside spending

Jan 22, 2026

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14 min read

An inside look at outside spending

Happy birthday, Citizens United! ... Stand your ground? ... And there's a name we haven't heard in a while.

Hank Stephenson
TJ L'Heureux
Hank Stephenson, +1
How many laws is enough?

Jan 21, 2026

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12 min read

How many laws is enough?

We blame the lobbyists ... Doomsday prepping, elections edition ... And don't mess with Howie.

Hank Stephenson
Nicole Ludden
Hank Stephenson, +1
A budget built on bad bets

Jan 20, 2026

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15 min read

A budget built on bad bets

The odds look slim ... Documented legal nonimmigrants ... And punny, but not that punny.

Hank Stephenson
Nicole Ludden
Hank Stephenson, +1
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Arizona Agenda

The weekday briefing that takes you behind the scenes in Arizona politics.

Contact: [email protected]