Arizona U.S. Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) formally expressed his interest in running for Governor of Arizona in the 2026 election.
“I love the greatest state in the Union, Arizona,” his statement began.
Biggs, who was first elected to Congress in 2016, emphasized the need for robust leadership to harness Arizona’s “full potential;” adding, “I have been honored to serve Arizona at the state and federal levels and will bring my experience home to my native state to help it fulfill its tremendous capacity.”
Biggs’ academic background includes a B.A. in Asian Studies from Brigham Young University, an M.A. in Political Science from Arizona State University, and a J.D. from the University of Arizona, which he earned in 1984. As an attorney, he practiced law in Arizona, Washington, and New Mexico.
However, it was in 1993 that Biggs’ life took an unexpected turn with a $10 million Publisher’s Clearing House Sweepstakes win.
He told reportedly The Arizona Republic in a 2002 interview, “I can’t say it (the $10 million) is my reason for running for office…But it does make it easier in that I don’t have to answer ‘How can you live on $24,000 a year?'”
Biggs successfully ran for the state house that year, edging out a crowded 5-way primary to take second place. He and then-incumbent State Rep. Eddie Farnsworth were unopposed in the general election; and Biggs would go on to serve four terms in the Arizona State House of Representatives. In 2010, he ran unopposed for the Arizona State Senate and in 2012, he was elected as the President of the Arizona State Senate.
In his pursuit to represent the people of the 5th Congressional District in the US House of Representatives, Rep. Biggs narrowly won a four-way Republican primary, and went on to defeat Democrat Talia Fuentes by 28 percentage points in the general election. He won his subsequent elections in 2018, 2020, 2022, and 2024 by comfortable margins.
