State Rep. Alma Hernandez is running for state Senate in Legislative District 20, where she faces a primary challenge from fellow Democrat Rocque Perez in what has already become a contentious race.

With no Republican in the contest, the July 21 primary will decide the seat.

LD20 covers a section of Pima County and is a majority Latino constituency, with 53% of residents identifying as Hispanic or Latino.

It leans Democratic and includes parts of Tucson's south and west sides.

Hernandez, a Tucson native and product of the Sunnyside School District, was first elected to the Arizona House of Representatives in 2018, becoming the youngest woman ever elected to the chamber. She is term-limited out of the House after four terms and is running for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Sally Ann Gonzales, who is also termed out.

She holds bachelor's and master's degrees in public health from the University of Arizona and has focused on health care, education and housing issues.

Perez filed a lawsuit in April seeking to remove Hernandez from the ballot, alleging she had racked up more than $20,000 in unpaid fines by filing several campaign finance reports hundreds of days late between 2018 and 2023. Pima County Superior Court Judge Cynthia Kuhn ruled that Hernandez should remain on the ballot.

The race is playing out against a charged political backdrop, with national tensions and local issues running high in LD20. Hernandez said she is confident her record and commitment to the district will resonate with voters.

Tucson Spotlight spoke with both candidates about water policy, ESA vouchers and affordable housing.

Project Blue, Amazon's proposed data center development near Tucson, has raised concerns among residents about the water and energy demands of large-scale industrial projects in a desert city where conservation is a way of life.

Hernandez told Tucson Spotlight she understands the concern but believes economic growth and resource protection are not mutually exclusive.

"We do not have to choose between economic opportunity and protecting our natural resources. We can and should do both responsibly," Hernandez said. "As a union member myself, I have seen how this has played out over the years and I stand with our unions who are working hard to find jobs and solutions for our communities."

She said that means stronger oversight of corporate water use, full transparency about consumption and ensuring community needs take priority, especially during times of scarcity.

Research suggests that advances in plumbing and water technology can significantly reduce overall consumption.

Hernandez said Tucson's water future should balance responsible use with economic investment, with community needs always coming before profit.

Another issue of concern for voters in LD20 is the Empowerment Scholarship Account program, which allows parents to redirect taxpayer dollars that would otherwise go to public schools toward private or alternative education.

Critics say the program amounts to defunding public education without explicitly cutting it from the state budget. Hernandez shares that concern.

"ESAs are bankrupting our state, plain and simple. The GOP has no intention of capping this program or implementing guardrails," Hernandez said. "We have parents buying luxury items, taking family trips and even going as far as to buying lingerie and condoms with our taxpayer dollars and now being told that if they have funding left from the years, they should transfer it to use for college."

Hernandez said reforming the ESA program would put Arizona in a significantly better position and that if it remains, it needs to be held to the same accountability standards applied to similar education funding programs.

Affordable housing is a national issue, but Hernandez said it carries particular urgency in Tucson given the city's public health emergency around homelessness. She said her commitment to the issue has not wavered.

"I have backed many bills that proposed millions in state funding to help struggling renters avoid eviction and remain housed including funding for the Housing Trust fund," Hernandez said.

Hernandez has secured $500,000 in state funding for heat relief and shelter support in Pima County, distributed to Sister Jose Women's Center, Azara Branch and St. Francis Shelter Community.

Hernandez and other candidates in Legislative Districts 17 and 20 will be available for public questions at a free, nonpartisan meet-and-greet hosted by Tucson Spotlight and the Arizona Luminaria on June 10 at the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona. The event is supported by Press Forward Southern Arizona, an initiative of the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona.

RSVP required. See website for details and to RSVP.

Quentin Agnello is a University of Arizona alum and freelance journalist in Tucson. Contact him at qsagnello@gmail.com.

Tucson Spotlight is a community-based newsroom that provides paid opportunities for students and rising journalists in Southern Arizona. Please consider supporting our work with a tax-deductible donation.