Sen. Mitzi Epstein

An Open Letter to Arizona Voters Who Supported President Trump To the Arizonans who voted for President Trump, I grew up in rural Arizona, in Prescott, on a dirt road behind the world’s oldest rodeo. My parents taught my siblings and I to appreciate hard work and the beauty of this state. Today, I’m the first Mom to ever serve as Arizona’s Attorney General, after proudly serving two terms as a Republican on the Corporation Commission, where we stood up for consumers when powerful utilities went too far. When I ran for Attorney General, I ran to represent all Arizonans. To be the Lawyer for the People. Not powerful corporations, not special interests, and not any political party. My job is to fight for the people of this state, whether you’re a Republican, Democrat, or Independent, whether you live in the Valley or in rural Arizona. And those aren’t just words – they are embodied by my record, our work inside the Attorney General’s Office. First, let’s talk about fentanyl: Arizonans want to keep dangerous drugs off our streets and protect our families. Alongside local police, sheriffs, and our federal law enforcement partners, my office has seized more than 27 million fentanyl pills, more than any Attorney General in Arizona history. We also fought to change the law to give law enforcement the tools to shoot down Mexican drug cartel drones transporting fentanyl, meth, and carfentanil across the border. Arizona law enforcement and federal agencies working here seize a massive share of the fentanyl recovered across the country, often accounting for more than half of all national seizures. My office works hand in glove to make those seizures and prosecute 80 percent of the major cases and the cartels. That’s what it means to focus on the worst of the worst: go after the drug cartels, smugglers, and human traffickers who threaten our communities every day. Second, let’s talk about the cost of living in Arizona: You can feel it everywhere you go in this state. People are working harder than ever, but too many families still feel like they're falling behind: Groceries cost more, housing costs more, health care costs more, and utility bills keep going up. That’s why I fought to stop the Kroger-Albertsons merger that would have combined Frys and Safeway. Arizona families deserve competition and choices at the grocery store, not fewer companies with more power to increase prices. It’s why my office sued RealPage and corporate landlords over allegations they colluded to drive up rents in 76% of the apartment units in Phoenix and more than 50% of apartments in Tucson. And it’s why I intervened to challenge proposed electricity rate increases from APS and TEP. When companies get so big they think the rules no longer apply to them, somebody has to stand up to them. That’s what I’ve done as Attorney General. Third, let’s talk about Arizona’s water supplies: Arizonans viscerally understand that we can’t keep doing dumb things with our water supply. It’s a threat to our families, our way of life, and our future. That’s why I sued the Saudi-owned megafarm pumping Arizona groundwater to grow alfalfa for export overseas to feed livestock in the Persian Gulf. While Arizona communities worry about dwindling groundwater, this foreign-owned corporation was taking advantage of our resources to serve its own interests. And it’s why I brought Riverview Dairy to the table in Cochise County to put up $11 million to redrill the wells of their neighbors and fallow thousands of acres of land in an effort to restore the aquifer there. Arizona’s water supply must be protected. It belongs to the people of this state, and I will keep fighting to defend it. Those are the fights I’ll keep taking on if I’m reelected. I won’t stop because someone has more money, more power, or a different political affiliation. I know you may not agree with me on everything, and we didn’t vote the same way last election. But I’m asking you to trust that I’ll fight for you – because you’re an Arizonan. This next term, I’ll fight to protect our water from foreign companies pumping it dry, will fight to ensure big data centers aren’t driving up your electric bills, will protect your privacy when companies like Flock invade it, and will investigate predatory surveillance pricing. Those aren’t partisan issues, they are our issues, our fights. I also plan to continue to be the most transparent AG in history by getting out and talking to Arizonans. I’ve done more town halls in the past four years – 60 plus of them – than any other AG. Those town halls – from Benson to Chino Valley, from Wendon to St. Johns, from Pearce to Lake Havasu, from Yuma to Sierra Vista – have been the best part of my job, and they have helped us to investigate and tackle some of our toughest issues. As your Attorney General I will always stand shoulder to shoulder with you – to protect our communities and ensure a future for our children in this state we all love. Sincerely, Kris Mayes, Arizona Attorney General