Juan Ciscomani declared winner of District 6 Congressional seat

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Juan Ciscomani will represent the newly-redrawn Congressional District 6, which covers most of Southeastern Arizona, including the eastern portion of Pima County and much of Tucson's east side.

AP has called the race for Ciscomani, a former advisor to Governor Doug Ducey, nearly a week after Election Day. He beat out opponent Kirsten Engel, former Arizona state senator.

Ciscomani will replace outgoing Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D - 2), who did not seek re-election. Following redistricting this year, most of the area currently represented by Kirkpatrick will become CD 6.

The representative-elect tweeted a statement after AP called the race:

On Tuesday morning, Nov. 15, Engel conceded the race to Ciscomani, saying, "The people of this district have spoken and we must honor their decision. Just now I called Juan Ciscomani and gave him my sincere congratulations for being the people’s choice to represent Arizona’s Sixth Congressional District. He will have my support as he works to bring together this diverse district and represent all of us in Congress."

KGUN 9 spoke with Ciscomani during his campaign. He says he is a believer of the American dream and wants to put more effort into border security.

Having gone through a U.S. path to citizenship himself, he believes the process needs to be updated.

“It needs to be changed and needs to be renewed. It's outdated and what's happening is that it's not really based on the needs of the workforce and the market today,” said Ciscomani.

Born in Mexico but growing up in Tucson, Ciscomani says he is a strong believer of the American dream.

“On that day you get sworn in, I can tell you that is the proudest day of my life,” said Ciscomani.

Ciscomani has made campaign promises related to the border as well—saying he would like to see more agents along the border and more use of tech-focused border security.

He also says he plans to prioritize issues related to the economy. He may be a less proactive legislator when it comes to public education: His position during the campaign was that schools should be a state's responsibility.

“What government can and should do, first of all, is stop the overspending. This overspending, this pumping of resources into the economy; it's creating a higher demand for things of low supply. And that's part of the problem that we're seeing on this inflation rate,” Ciscomani told KGUN 9.

Election night tallies showed Engel with a narrow but discernable lead. That lead diminished in the days following the election but the race remained too close to call until ballot counts were announced Monday night.

Engel, Ciscomani's democratic opponent, ran a campaign reflecting her 'passion' for clean air and water. Other campaign focuses included public education, abortion access, Social Security, and Medicare.