Most Arizonans never knew Kevin DeMenna’s name. Still, if you’ve lived here any length of time, a law he helped shape has probably touched your life. The veteran Republican lobbyist attended every legislative session at the Capitol since 1980. He died on Election Day, Nov. 3, after a battle with cancer. He was 67.
Over those 46 years, DeMenna represented everyone from the American Cancer Society to health care firms and cannabis dispensaries. Just this May, the Arizona Society of CPAs, one of his longest-standing clients, named him an honorary member. In 2022, he even laid out six ideas for fixing a broken Legislature, a rare move for someone who made his living inside it.
From Prescott to the Capitol
DeMenna grew up in Prescott, where he was a rodeo and gymnastics standout at Prescott High School. In 1979, he joined the state Senate as a research analyst. Eventually, he rose to chief of staff for the Senate majority.
From there, he co-founded a lobbying firm with Robert Robb and Fred DuVal. He launched his own shop, DeMenna & Associates, in 1998. Later, in 2017, he started DeMenna Public Affairs with his sons, Ryan and Joe.
A Republican With a Democratic Partner
That early partnership says a lot about the man. DuVal is a Democrat who went on to run for governor in 2014. Yet he remembered DeMenna as a “happy warrior” whose energy made any cause feel winnable.
Republicans said much the same. Former Senate President and Secretary of State Ken Bennett called DeMenna his closest adviser. In fact, Bennett often slept in a spare room at the DeMenna home during session. “He didn’t burn bridges or make it personal,” Bennett told the Arizona Republic.
An Honest Accounting
Photo Credit: Arizona Republic
DeMenna’s life wasn’t without stumbles. He had publicly acknowledged a struggle with prescription drugs, an issue that the normal person has the opportunity to deal with away from the prying eyes of the press. That said, he approached these issues with a kind of candor that is uncommon in politics. It deserves to be part of how he’s remembered.
What Arizona Loses
Today’s Capitol too often rewards the opposite of what DeMenna practiced. Lawmakers score points by torching opponents, and compromise gets treated as betrayal. Meanwhile, the actual work of governing stalls.
DeMenna understood that relationships outlast any single vote. He could disagree with you on Tuesday and help you on Wednesday. Ultimately, that’s not weakness…it’s how things get done.
Arizona could use far more people willing to work that way, and it’s a lesson that will now be even more important with the changes in our state’s power structure. Everyone would be better off learning the lessons that he taught us.
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