Interview with Joanna Mendoza, Congressional District 6 Democratic candidate

Joanna Mendoza, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Congressional District 6, joined us to discuss her campaign as the Arizona general election gets closer. Juan Ciscomani, the Republican candidate, declined to join the conversation.

Arizona’s 6th Congressional District covers portions of Southeastern Arizona and the southern Tucson metro area, including Greenlee County, parts of Cochise County and parts of Pima, Pinal and Graham counties.

Going into the election, Mendoza said the number one issue on voters’ minds in the district is affordability.

“We hear all throughout the district that people just can’t afford groceries, they can’t afford gas, utilities, especially during the summer. It gets really hot here in Arizona, and so people can’t afford their energy bill,” Mendoza said.

Along with affordability is health care. According to Mendoza, for the well-being of the district, the Medicaid cuts that were made as a result of H.R. 1 need to be restored. She said there are ways to address fraud and abuse in the system without completely cutting people out.

Border security is also a topic at the top of the list because of the district’s proximity to the border. Mendoza said she hasn’t agreed with how the Trump or Biden Administrations have addressed border security, and also pointed out border issues are not limited to security.

“Overall, we not only need border security, but we need to address immigration reform,” Mendoza said. “We’re talking worker visas, we’re talking the system that has been bogged down and backlogged for such a long time.”

She also said national security should be a priority, but the security currently at the border needs to be revamped.

“We need to modernize our ports of entry, ensure that we are working with Mexico,” Mendoza said. “Ensure local law enforcement, like country sheriffs, departments down in Cochise, have the resources they need to secure the border on this side for our communities.”