Andy Biggs campaigns for governor in Yuma, touts county's economy

Republican Congressman Andy Biggs made Yuma a key stop in his Arizona governor campaign, telling local voters that the county’s farms, fuel costs and food supply give this border community outsized weight in the race.

Biggs spoke at a Yuma County Republican Committee meeting at the Yuma Community Food Bank. The committee’s calendar listed the May 26 gathering from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. and identified Yuma City Council candidate Ron Van Why and Arizona Treasurer candidate Katherine Haley as guest speakers alongside Biggs. He also met with voters in San Luis and Yuma, a sign that the campaign was trying to reach more than one pocket of the county in the same trip.

The appeal was tailored to a county of 224,449 residents, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates for July 1, 2025, where 66.1% of people identify as Hispanic or Latino. University of Arizona Cooperative Extension said Yuma County agriculture and agribusiness contributed $4.4 billion to the Arizona state economy in 2022, and that multiplier effects added another $3.9 billion in sales to the Yuma County economy. Biggs cast that economic base as a reason Yuma matters in the governor’s race, along with food-security concerns tied to the region’s agricultural role.

Biggs also leaned hard into gasoline prices, blaming higher costs on Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs and arguing that Arizona needs cheaper access to Texas fuel pipelines rather than relying on California fuel sources. He said California-style fuel blends cost drivers 50 to 60 cents more per gallon. In a county where long drives are routine and many households feel every price change at the pump, that message connected the governor’s race to the daily cost of getting to work, hauling produce and moving goods across the region.

Fuel prices remain a live issue across Arizona. California Energy Commission data put California’s average retail gasoline price at $5.26 per gallon in March 2026, while AAA listed Arizona’s statewide average at about $4.72 to $4.74 per gallon on May 28 and 29. FOX 10 Phoenix reported in March that Arizona lawmakers and U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego were seeking an EPA fuel-blend waiver that could save drivers 40 to 50 cents per gallon, underscoring how quickly campaign rhetoric has become policy debate.

Biggs entered the Yuma stop with momentum. KJZZ reported on May 19 that a Noble Predictive Insights poll showed him leading Republican primary rival David Schweikert by 30 points, though Schweikert said his own internal polling showed a much closer contest. With Arizona’s primary now set for July 21 after Gov. Katie Hobbs signed the date change in February, Yuma has become one of the places where the governor’s race is being tested against the concerns of border communities before summer voting begins.