Contact: Aly Ferguson
aly@newpolitics.org; 480-363-6465
Retired Marine Corps drill instructor and 20-year military veteran defeats Rep. Juan Ciscomani in a top DCCC Red to Blue race, helping Democrats retake the House.
WASHINGTON D.C. (November 3, 2026) — New Politics endorsed candidate JoAnna Mendoza has won the race for Arizona's 6th Congressional District, defeating Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani and flipping one of the most competitive seats in the country. Mendoza, the daughter of farmworkers, enlisted at age 17 and served 20 years in the Navy and Marine Corps, retiring as a Marine Corps drill instructor.
Mendoza’s victory is part of a wave of New Politics-backed servant leaders who carried Democrats to a House majority tonight. New Politics backed 20 House challengers in the general election, representing more than one-third of the DCCC's Red to Blue list.
Emily Cherniack, Founder and Executive Director of New Politics, released the following statement:
“Tonight, Arizona sent a drill instructor to Congress and turned AZ-06 blue. After Democrats came up short here in 2022 and again in 2024, Jo Mendoza’s leadership, integrity, and grit gave the party the breakthrough it needed in this district. Jo didn’t come from money or connections. She came from farmworker parents and a lifetime of service, and she earned every vote in this election. Jo has been part of the New Politics family for years. Before she ever filed to run for office, she went through our Answering the Call training, and she was always clear that running wasn’t a departure from her military career. It was a continuation of it. We’ve been proud to stand with Jo every step of the way, through the primary and all the way to tonight, and we are proud that she will be part of the new Democratic majority in the House.”
New Politics is an organization that revitalizes American democracy by recruiting, developing, and electing leaders across the ideological and political spectrum who have committed their lives to serving their communities and our country, either through military service, national service organizations like AmeriCorps or the Peace Corps, or by demonstrating strong service-based leadership in their community. New Politics' support includes strategic advising and training in all aspects of a candidate's campaign, such as fundraising, communications, organizing, hiring, and team building. New Politics has raised over $40 million to support over 475 candidates, successfully electing more than 200 of them to office, from Congress to School Board. Learn more at newpolitics.org.
