Kris Mayes

Kris Mayes
Mayes in 2022
27th Attorney General of Arizona
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 2, 2023
GovernorKatie Hobbs
Preceded byMark Brnovich
Chair of the Arizona Corporation Commission
In office
January 2009 – December 31, 2010
Preceded byMike Gleason
Succeeded byGary Pierce
Member of the Arizona Corporation Commission
In office
October 2003 – December 31, 2010
Preceded byJames Irvin
Succeeded byBrenda Burns
Personal details
Born1970 or 1971 (age 53–54)
Prescott, Arizona, U.S.
Political partyRepublican (before 2019)
Democratic (2019–present)
Children1
EducationArizona State University, Tempe (BA, JD)
Columbia University (MPA)
WebsiteGovernment website

Kristin Kay Mayes (born 1970 or 1971)[1] is an American attorney, reporter, and politician who is the Arizona Attorney General. A member of the Democratic Party, Mayes was elected in 2022, defeating Republican Abraham Hamadeh by a margin of just 280 votes in one of the closest elections in the state's history.[2][3] Previously Mayes was a Professor of Practice at Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law and Chair of the Arizona Corporation Commission.[4][5][6]

Mayes is the second woman elected Arizona Attorney General (after Janet Napolitano), the third openly lesbian woman elected attorney general of a state in the United States (after Maura Healey and Dana Nessel), and the second openly LGBT person elected to statewide office in Arizona (after Kyrsten Sinema).[7][8]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Kavaler, Tara (November 19, 2022). "As close as it gets: Why Arizona's attorney general race is one of tightest in state history". The Arizona Republic. Archived from the original on November 19, 2022.
  3. ^ Giles, Ben (November 21, 2022). "Kris Mayes defeats Abe Hamadeh in Arizona attorney general race". KJZZ. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  4. ^ "Kris Mayes". Arizona State University. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
  5. ^ "Bio". sfis.asu.edu. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  6. ^ "Kris Mayes Named Chairman of Corporation Commission)" (PDF). Arizona Corporation Commission. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  7. ^ Kavaler, Tara (December 29, 2022). "'Thankful': New Arizona Attorney General Mayes responds after recount affirms win". The Arizona Republic.
  8. ^ Riley, John (December 29, 2022). "Lesbian Candidate Kris Mayes Wins Arizona Attorney General Race". Metro Weekly.