Working families deserve better representation

This article originally appeared in the Arizona Daily Star. It represents an opinion and analysis authored by Rocque Perez. The views expressed are those of the author and do not reflect the official policies or positions of any affiliation.

When I served on Tucson City Council, I had the honor of receiving guidance from intentional community leaders — the kind that show up, listen to our values, and fight to ensure those values shape better outcomes for everyone. In Tucson, families demand leadership that reflects our values.

In Legislative District 20 — where, according to 2024 voter demographics, 47 percent of residents are registered Democrats, 56 percent are Hispanic, and more than 68,000 are Gen Z youth — the expectation for values-driven representation could not be clearer in the most progressive legislative district in the region.

Yet for too long, the Hernandez family has fallen short and those I represented feel the impact. According to newly released scorecards like Progress Arizona’s, Rep. Alma Hernandez ranks dead last among all Democrats in the Legislature. The scorecard draws from 242 votes vetted by more than 30 Arizona community organizations, labor unions, and advocacy groups, evaluating where lawmakers stand on issues such as mass incarceration, education, reproductive justice, climate action, healthcare, housing, and voting rights. Her sister, Rep. Consuelo Hernandez, ranks second to last.

The Children’s Action Alliance rated Alma the second-lowest Democrat on measures impacting children’s health, safety, and education. The Arizona Center for Economic Progress rated her sixth-lowest among Democrats for votes on fair taxation, education funding, healthcare, and housing.

Meanwhile, Consuelo, in her concurrent role as a Sunnyside Unified School District board member, has earned a reputation for absenteeism — often joining meetings virtually, if at all. As schools across Tucson work to improve student attendance, it’s reasonable to expect board members to model the same accountability. Leadership means showing up, not logging in.

But Alma’s record of placing her own political identity above the needs of her district is the true concern. She has made her unwavering support for the Israeli government a defining feature of her political persona, proudly displaying a personalized “Zionist” license plate and calling herself a “Zionist Democrat.” On a recent podcast with her siblings, she celebrated leading legislation to criminalize protest encampments on college campuses — an effort that suppresses free speech about the crisis in Gaza. She also highlighted her work advancing anti-boycott legislation, securing $7 million for a Holocaust education center in Phoenix, opening a trade office in Tel Aviv, and organizing a legislative delegation to Israel.

Cultural education and diplomacy have value, but when a lawmaker’s time and energy are largely directed toward international posturing while her own community faces barriers to care, housing instability, and underfunded schools, it reveals a moral and political misalignment with her district. When Democratic legislators abstain or side with Republicans, they also make it harder for women to access care, for teachers to be paid fairly, for renters to stay housed, and for young people to see a future in Arizona.

That misalignment became impossible to ignore when Alma invited the community to a family event sponsored by her, her sister, and a slate of conservative organizations and individuals. I stopped by given it was taking place on the side of Tucson I represented — only to find Alma and Consuelo tabling alongside the likes of Daniel Butierrez, the Republican who ran against Democrat Adelita Grijalva in the most recent general election.

Alma’s financials from the last campaign cycle further underscore the disconnect. Her donor base leans heavily on Phoenix interests and out-of-state PACs, many tied to corporate and lobbying networks. Her brother, Daniel Hernandez — who lost his second bid for Congress despite raising the most money in that race — refused to reject corporate PAC donations. According to filings with the Arizona See the Money portal, roughly 80 percent of individual contributions to Alma’s campaign come from Phoenix, with less than 10 percent from Southern Arizona. Nearly 60 percent originate from lobbyists and executives, and nearly one-third come from corporate PACs.

In a community where one in four families live below the poverty line, Tucsonans deserve representation who fights for them — not for utility companies, not for corporate donors, and not for agendas overseas. Tucson, it’s time to demand representation worthy of the city we love.