By Alexander Lomax
It has been an absolutely wild (and not in a good way) 2025 for the Arizona Democratic Party. After a vote of state committee members showed that they desired a real change, they voted out their previous Chair and voted in a relative outsider, Robert Branscomb II. But what followed was an absolute mess: he fired nearly all of the staff and replaced them with his own favorites, fundraising dropped off of a cliff, budgeting efforts came off as absurd, and he lost the confidence of everyone who matters at the state party (read our coverage here).
After the Arizona Dems voted in favor of ousting him by a wide margin, they recently came back together to vote on who would be his successor. And they made their choice with a resounding margin as they voted for former state legislator Charlene Fernandez to lead them into the future.
So who is Fernandez? She served as Democratic leader of the State House of Representatives from 2019 to 2021 and was first elected to the state House in 2014, representing Southwestern Arizona including the majority of Yuma County. Before that she spent 12 years working for Congressman Ed Pastor, and also served Governor Janet Napolitano as a liaison for the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality in Yuma County, working with federal and Mexican environmental agencies. After resigning from the legislature in November 2021, she became Arizona Director for Rural Development at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Past her own experiences, she has built a family of political insiders. After her departure her son Brian was chosen to succeed her in the State House. Her daughter Lisa was also formerly the Chief of Staff to Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego.
So what does this mean for the Democrats? For starters, stability. As a longtime politico she understands the importance of strong relationships, of not alienating partners, and knows what to make public and what to keep private, something that was her predecessor’s undoing. She obviously has deep ties all across the state, but more than that, with her time working with the Biden administration likely made some strong connections in Washington DC, something that is very likely to bear fruit for the state party.
Will it singlehandedly stem the bleeding that Arizona Dems have suffered regarding voter registration and interest? Certainly not, their issues lie deeper than simply a good Chair. But it is absolutely a step in the right direction as the party licks its wounds and looks forward to 2026.