Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs signed a bill on Wednesday repealing Arizona’s Cesar Chavez holiday.
Lawmakers introduced the bill in March after multiple women accused the late labor rights leader of sexual abuse.
Several cities and states moved rapidly to strip Chavez’s name from holidays, buildings, schools and other honors.
The bill passed out of the state Legislature with strong bipartisan support, but Democrats who voted for the bill said they were disappointed that Republicans wouldn’t consider renaming the holiday after the farmworkers movement.
Hobbs said in a statement that the allegations against Chavez are deeply troubling and her thoughts are with the victims.
She also wrote that she’s working on other ways to honor farmworkers and their contributions to the state.
“I am incredibly grateful for our hardworking farmworkers. Their resilience is evident in the lettuce fields of Yuma and the orange-picking farms of Mesa,” Hobbs wrote. “Arizona’s farmworkers are the backbone of our state’s economy. I remain committed to supporting them and ensuring their contributions are recognized with dignity and respect.”
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Voters approved the last raise in 1998, taking the pay from $15,000 to the current $24,000. Since then, there have been several attempts to boost the pay, but all were rejected. -
Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona is among congressional Democrats who are trying again this week to force a vote to end the war in Iran. -
Sky Harbor spokesperson Monica Hernandez confirmed that ICE agents have now been gone for a week after vacating the airport on April 6. -
Gov. Katie Hobbs has vetoed a bill that sought to clip the legal wings of Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes, with one Republican legislator even calling her a "bully" for how she is pursuing companies over their groundwater pumping. -
Rep. David Schweikert, a notoriously aggressive campaigner, said the attacks will continue as he tries to distinguish himself from fellow Rep. Andy Biggs as the Republican most capable of winning in November against the Democratic incumbent, Gov. Katie Hobbs.
