Logo
Search
Home
Archives
Log in
Sign Up
Logo
Oliver Buchannon
Nicole Ludden

Nicole Ludden is a reporter at the Arizona Agenda, where she covers the antics of Arizona’s Legislature and the policy fights shaping the state. She previously covered local government for the Arizona Daily Star, and before that, worked at the Tucson Weekly and in the Arizona Republic’s newsroom. She’s a graduate of ASU’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism.

Welcome to the voucher war

Jun 15, 2026

•

7 min read

Welcome to the voucher war

A behind-the-scenes bargain on school vouchers ended in a late-night Capitol blowup — and a new Republican strategy to win the voucher war.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Buried in the budget

Jun 12, 2026

•

8 min read

Buried in the budget

We read the fine print ... Did they not know about the cameras? ... And that's gotta sting.

TJ L'Heureux
Nicole Ludden
TJ L'Heureux, +1
Budget, then bounce

Jun 10, 2026

•

8 min read

Budget, then bounce

The fiscal frenzy finale ... The bill blitz begins ... And you paid for that tweet.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Arizona’s residency honor system

Jun 9, 2026

•

8 min read

Arizona’s residency honor system

Public office, private address ... Turning up the heat on Heap ... And was Winston Churchill a crybaby?

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Where’s the budget?

Jun 4, 2026

•

7 min read

Where’s the budget?

Error 404: Budget not found ... Get sued, donate to Warren ... And Lela looks good in bicycle pants.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Big Vape’s big win

Jun 3, 2026

•

6 min read

Big Vape’s big win

Where there’s smoke, there’s lobbying ... Vacations are expensive ... And the ugliest capitol in America.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
A blurry border line item

May 29, 2026

•

9 min read

A blurry border line item

Arizona sheriffs say they use state border funding to intercept drugs. But the fine print on how the money can be spent has turned it into a fight over immigration enforcement.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Primary beef

May 20, 2026

•

9 min read

Primary beef

The messiest legislative primaries ... Bernie is worth 600 votes, right? ... And we could certainly do worse.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Flooded, then forgotten

May 18, 2026

•

7 min read

Flooded, then forgotten

Globe and Miami are still recovering from deadly floods, but the next storm may arrive before any state money does.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
The Young and the Budgetless

May 12, 2026

•

8 min read

The Young and the Budgetless

The drama behind your tax dollars ... Per diem that you don't work ... And how to win friends and influence voters.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Baiting the veto queen

May 7, 2026

•

6 min read

Baiting the veto queen

The budget blame game ... Clamoring to be his lieutenant ... And “Dems” win GOP debate.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
How to become a fake candidate

Apr 24, 2026

•

6 min read

How to become a fake candidate

A look inside the spoiler scam ... Election fight isn’t over ... And strikers vs. stalkers.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Arizona’s Cold War

Apr 23, 2026

•

8 min read

Arizona’s Cold War

Hobbs gets tough on China ... Welcome to the Theater of Allegation ... And it's a conflict, not a war!

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
The truth behind Arizona’s SNAP free fall

Apr 17, 2026

•

9 min read

The truth behind Arizona’s SNAP free fall

As Arizona raced to comply with new federal SNAP rules, the state made food assistance harder to get than necessary.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Airbnb amnesia

Apr 14, 2026

•

12 min read

Airbnb amnesia

A short-term memory problem ... The second coming of Donald ... And a history of presidential tacos.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
The DCS solution

Apr 7, 2026

•

15 min read

The DCS solution

Six bills to save kids ... Speaking of child welfare ... And Sherry Jeridan is the sheriff we need.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Your next governor has baggage

Apr 3, 2026

•

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
Cancel your summer plans

Mar 30, 2026

•

14 min read

Cancel your summer plans

Budget: to be continued ... Thanks, Linda ... And the bloomin' Onion.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Policing prostitution

Mar 24, 2026

•

15 min read

Policing prostitution

Blame the buyers ... Last call for candidates ... And a comedically cluttered ADHD fever dream.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
The conflicting interests of Brian Fernandez

Mar 13, 2026

•

15 min read

The conflicting interests of Brian Fernandez

A state senator proposed state funding for his employer. He says that’s not a conflict of interest.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Ghosted by Medicaid

Mar 10, 2026

•

15 min read

Ghosted by Medicaid

Healthcare, subject to availability ... The return of the Cyber Ninjas ... And a partisan veto.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Compensating the kidfluencers

Mar 5, 2026

•

14 min read

Compensating the kidfluencers

Pay up, parents ... Fraudster says it’s not fraud ... And a simple solution to photo radar.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Ballot bloat returns

Feb 27, 2026

•

14 min read

Ballot bloat returns

You thought the 2024 ballot was long ... It’s bamboo again! ... And poor Justin can’t catch a W.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
The gatekeepers

Feb 25, 2026

•

16 min read

The gatekeepers

The committee kill count ... You lie! ... And he’s a cat.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
A stormy tax season

Feb 20, 2026

•

14 min read

A stormy tax season

It’s been a taxing year ... Who wants to be a lawmaker? ... And we almost had to say something nice about Jake.

Nicole Ludden
Nicole Ludden
Load more

Arizona Agenda

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

Contact: [email protected]