Q&A: Lupe Contreras clocks out

Democratic Rep. Lupe Contreras’ office is a time capsule of the 14 years he’s spent at the Arizona Capitol.

Framed family photos on the wall show his children growing from little kids into teenagers during his years at the Legislature.

Nearby, a shelf is lined with photos of colleagues who didn’t make it to see him leave — lawmakers, security guards and custodians who died during his tenure.

Now, as Contreras prepares to walk away, the weight of those years is starting to hit him.

Contreras isn’t leaving politics altogether. He’s running for justice of the peace in the Avondale-based Agua Fria District, a job he hopes will let him spend more time with his family.

As hard as it is to leave the Legislature behind, Contreras’ move to the justice court was set up more than a decade ago.

Ben Miranda, a former state lawmaker and longtime Latino civic leader, recruited Contreras to run for an open House seat after 2012’s redistricting. Contreras wasn’t planning on a political career — he had loaded UPS trucks, then worked in Miranda’s law office and had his sights set on becoming a detective.

It took some convincing, but Contreras eventually heeded the call. Miranda laid out a path for him: serve in the House, move to the Senate, then run for justice of the peace.

Now, the last chapter of that plan is playing out without Miranda here to see it. He died in 2013.

Here’s what Contreras had to say about his time in the Legislature, edited for clarity and length.

I come in here, I’m on the third floor, and I was in an office where you could barely fit a desk. It was a little closet. They did construction after that, and I got a different office.¹

But I was learning as I was going, and every day, (Miranda) was calling me — ‘just two things,’ every morning, and he just kind of lined everything up.

I was going to people and trying to learn and figure out what was going on, and then all of a sudden (former Sen. Anna Tovar) was like, ‘I’m gonna run for supervisor, I’m leaving the Senate, so you need to run for Senate.’ I’m like, I’m still getting my feet wet.

So here we go, and now I’m running for Senate. Well, in that transition phase, (Miranda) passes away. He passed away after my first year in office, coming into my second year.

It was a big kick in the gut. I lost my mentor. I lost the guy who had brought me into this space that I was very uncomfortable with and still learning. And then being asked to run for that next phase that he wanted me to run for, it was a whirlwind of emotions.

I think the respect in the building, the camaraderie amongst members has changed quite a bit from my earlier years.

The way politics has evolved over the years — from the first half of my tenure here to the second half of my tenure — politics has become very negative.

The vibes around here — I mean, we can have our disagreements on the floor and in committees and stuff, but there used to be some kind of end to it. Now, it bleeds on further.

I still have quite a few friends on both sides of the aisle. I have great respect for a lot of Republicans, and I think I can say that goes both ways. But it’s hard for most to have that, because if you want respect, give respect, and there’s a line you don’t cross. And it’s hard to hold on to that line.

When you start talking about certain policies that affect you personally, your community, it does start to get to you.

It’s our job to fight those fights. But others are fighting for political reasons, and some of us are fighting because it impacts our families. It does start hurting and stinging. That’s why you’ll see some comments made.

Until you’ve walked even a few steps in our shoes, it’s a whole different ballgame. It’s not just a job, it’s personal. There are lives at stake.

It was crazy, because I was in leadership for 10 of my 14 years. When I came back over to the House (in 2023), I didn’t want to be in leadership, but they asked me to do it.

My wife, my rock, she convinced me. She said, ‘If you’re being asked to lead, it’s time for you to lead. Your experience is needed, and although it might impact the family, you need to do it.’

And wow, those 18 months were like hell on wheels.

We were supposed to have 29 members, and I think we only had 29 members for about two weeks because of resignations. There were a lot of things going on on the floor between Republicans and Democrats. (Former House Speaker) Ben Toma and I tried to work together as much as we could.

But even with that, there were still things that happened on that floor.

After the Arizona Supreme Court revived a territorial-era abortion ban in 2024, Democratic lawmakers led the push to repeal it. The effort took weeks of Republican resistance, and some Democratic lawmakers started a “shame” chant against Republicans for delaying a repeal.

In his office, Contreras keeps a framed photo of himself hugging Democratic Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton as they watched the votes come in to finally repeal the abortion ban. Gov. Katie Hobbs signed it with a note: “Thank you!”

It was just a special moment, finally getting something done for everyone who had been fighting for it for so long. It had such an impact for people all over the country, not just Arizona. My wife, my daughters — it was such a big thing. To be able to be a part of that and to be at the helm, it was really special.

Relationship-building is key in this place, especially when you’re in the minority. I mean, you don’t sell your soul, it’s just about just having relationships.

At the end of the day, we know what happens to our bills. They’re not being heard. But if you can still have a positive impact in some way, shape or form, you get it done.

That’s the push and pull. Our members are still trying to get their own bills heard, while also doing the work on the bills that are actually being heard. Democrats are doing double the work. And staff is doing double the work.

You know, it’s a crazy point in my life. I’m feeling positive, but you never put the cart before the horse. There’s a lot going on in my life right now, but I’m trying to be as positive as possible.

The time has come. I’ve always said I wanted to stay within my district, and that’s what I’m doing.

But I think I’ve given everything I could to this place. It’s bittersweet, because I really do love this place, as crazy as that sounds. It’ll always have a place in my heart — the people here, the staff, the security, the custodians, everybody.

Yeah. There was a little bump in the road with coming back to the House, but I’m finally running for JP now. This is the last part of the puzzle. So I’m going for it.

It’s been a great ride. I never once thought of being in a place such as this. Coming from a small town like I come from, it’s nice to go back and talk to kids in my district.

I’m no one special. I’m just somebody who came from the same town and the same area they came from. I’m just warming the seat so one day they can come over here and take over.