GOP Navy SEAL Vet Holds on to House Seat in Battleground State

by Randy DeSoto, The Western Journal Nov. 9, 2026 7:20 pm



Republican Navy SEAL vet Eli Crane managed to hold on to his House seat, despite Arizona Democrats flipping two other congressional seats and the state legislature.

Arizona’s official general election results show Crane, running for his third term to represent the 2nd congressional district, bested challenger Democrat Jonathan Nez with 49.6 percent of the vote to 48.5 percent, with not quite 4,000 votes separating the two.

The Associated Press called the race for Crane on Monday.

He first ran in 2022, defeating Democrat Tom O’Halleran by approximately 54 percent to 46 percent, according to Ballotpedia.

The Navy vet then beat Nez in 2024 by 10 percentage points, 54.5 to 45.5 percent, so this year’s race was a rematch and much closer.

FOX 10 Phoenix
@FOX10Phoenix
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JUST IN: AP projects Republican incumbent Eli Crane has won the U.S. House Arizona District 2 matchup defeating Democrat Jonathan Nez, and Libertarian Curtis Goodwin. More election results:

https://fox10phoenix.com/news/2026-arizona-midterm-election-results


1:03 PM · Nov 9, 2026

Crane responded to the race being called for him, posting on social media, “I’ll work with anyone to get things done for AZ-02. But I’ll also stand in the way of anyone trying to move this country in the wrong direction.”


Crane’s victory came as two other congressional districts held by Republicans fell to their Democratic challengers.

Democrat Amish Shah topped former Arizona Cardinals kicker Thomas “Jay” Feely in the 1st congressional district currently represented by David Schweikert. The first, centered on Scottsdale and eastern Phoenix, has been considered a swing district in recent election cycles.

Democrats also flipped the 6th congressional district, with JoAnna Mendoza beating incumbent Juan Ciscomani. The 6th is another swing district and makes up the southeast part of the state, including parts of Tucson.

Republican former Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb also won his race to represent the 5th congressional district, a seat currently held by GOP Rep. Andy Biggs, who ran for Arizona governor this cycle, but lost to Democrat incumbent Katie Hobbs.

Following last week’s elections, Republicans will represent four of Arizona’s nine congressional seats, down from six.

Democrats swept the statewide offices, including governor, secretary of state, attorney general, and treasurer.

They also flipped both the state House and the Senate, in which Republicans currently hold a narrow majority.

It is the first time the Democrats have had a trifecta in the Grand Canyon State since 1966, according to the CBS affiliate KPHO-TV.

Scotland Kraker
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Anyone arguing that results like this happen without investing in state parties across the country is kidding themselves. 6 new Dem trifectas. Breaking 5 GOP trifectas. Great job to Ken, the DLCC, and all the state parties who did the work needed to win everywhere.


Ken Martin
@kenmartin73

When I became DNC chair, I made a bet: If we organized everywhere, we could win anywhere.

Democrats had to start organizing year-round—in blue states, red states, and purple states—to rebuild trust with voters and win back power nationwide. And that’s exactly what we did.

The Democrats also gained a new trifecta as a result of the midterms in the swing states of Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/202...ds-house-seat/