Regina Romero

Regina Romero

Democratic Party

Mayor of Tucson

Tenure

2019 - Present

Term ends

2027

Years in position

5

Predecessor

Jonathan Rothschild

Prior offices

Tucson City Council Ward 1

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Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 7, 2023

Education

Bachelor's

University of Arizona, 2000

Contact

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Regina Romero (Democratic Party) is the Mayor of Tucson in Arizona. She assumed office on December 2, 2019. Her current term ends on December 6, 2027.

Romero (Democratic Party) ran for re-election for Mayor of Tucson in Arizona. She won in the general election on November 7, 2023.

Romero was a Democratic member of the Tucson City Council in Arizona, representing Ward 1 from 2007 to 2019. She became the first Latina elected to the city council when she was elected in 2007.

Biography

Romero was born in Somerton, Arizona, and graduated from the University of Arizona in 2000 with a B.A. in communication. She also earned a certificate in state and local government from Harvard University, which she completed in 2013. She co-founded the César Chavez Holiday Coalition and Las Adelitas. Her professional experience includes the following:

• 2019-present: Mayor, City of Tucson
• 2007-2019: Council member, City of Tucson
• 2005-2007: Council aide, City of Tucson
• 2000-2005: Neighborhood reinvestment coordinator, Pima County
• 1996-2000: Youth internship coordinator, Pima County

Elections

2023

See also: Mayoral election in Tucson, Arizona (2023)

General election

General election for Mayor of Tucson

Incumbent Regina Romero defeated Janet Wittenbraker, Edward Ackerley, and Arthur Kerschen in the general election for Mayor of Tucson on November 7, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Regina Romero (D)	59.9	57,559
		Janet Wittenbraker (R)	32.0	30,740
		Edward Ackerley (Independent)	6.5	6,241
		Arthur Kerschen (L)	1.4	1,326
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	155

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 96,021
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Zach Yentzer (Independent)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Mayor of Tucson

Incumbent Regina Romero defeated Francis Saitta in the Democratic primary for Mayor of Tucson on August 1, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Regina Romero	97.1	35,063
		Francis Saitta (Write-in)	0.4	148
		Other/Write-in votes	2.5	908

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 36,119
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Mayor of Tucson

Janet Wittenbraker advanced from the Republican primary for Mayor of Tucson on August 1, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Janet Wittenbraker	97.7	15,726
		Other/Write-in votes	2.3	369

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 16,095
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Libertarian primary election

Libertarian primary for Mayor of Tucson

Arthur Kerschen advanced from the Libertarian primary for Mayor of Tucson on August 1, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Arthur Kerschen	92.8	220
		Other/Write-in votes	7.2	17

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 237
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Romero in this election.

2019

See also: Mayoral election in Tucson, Arizona (2019)

General election

General election for Mayor of Tucson

Regina Romero defeated Edward Ackerley and Mike Cease in the general election for Mayor of Tucson on November 5, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Regina Romero (D)	55.9	55,654
		Edward Ackerley (Independent)	39.4	39,233
		Mike Cease (G)	4.0	3,953
		Other/Write-in votes	0.7	728

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 99,568
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Mayor of Tucson

Regina Romero defeated Steve Farley and Randi Dorman in the Democratic primary for Mayor of Tucson on August 27, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Regina Romero	50.2	24,592
		Steve Farley	37.1	18,175
		Randi Dorman	12.5	6,109
		Other/Write-in votes	0.3	137

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 49,013
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Green primary election

Green primary for Mayor of Tucson

Mike Cease advanced from the Green primary for Mayor of Tucson on August 27, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Cease	59.5	91
		Other/Write-in votes	40.5	62

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 153
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2015

See also: Tucson, Arizona municipal elections, 2015

The city of Tucson, Arizona, held elections for mayor and city council on November 3, 2015. Because only one candidate from each party filed to run, the primary scheduled for August 25, 2015, was called off. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was May 27, 2015, for primary candidates and was September 24, 2015, for general election candidates. Three of the six city council seats were up for election. In the Ward 1 race, incumbent Regina Romero (D) defeated Bill Hunt (R) in the general election.

Tucson City Council Ward 1, General election, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Regina Romero Incumbent	57.6%	45,367
	Republican	Bill Hunt	42.1%	33,141
		Write-in votes	0.33%	261
Total Votes				78,769
Source: Pima County Elections Department, "Official Canvass Consolidated Elections November 3, 2015," November 9, 2015

Campaign themes

2023

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Regina Romero did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.

2019

Regina Romero did not complete Ballotpedia's 2019 Candidate Connection survey.

2015

Romero outlined three primary campaign themes in a survey conducted by Arizona Public Media:

“	I have a proven record of success for Innovation, Prosperity and Progress for Tucson families. Innovation: Secured partnerships with UofA to keep young, millennial talent in Tucson. Investments in tech Launch Arizona and StartUp Tucson leveraged millions in federal grants and private investment. Balanced a $1.2 billion budget while protecting public safety and services for Seniors and families. Prosperity: I led the effort to create an Economic Initiatives Office with 21 job-creation incentives at the City of Tucson, creating 2300 high-wage long term jobs. Strategic economic development will encourage the right kind of growth for Tucson, and help local entrepreneurs build their own success. Progress: I fought to create a sustainable water policy that encourages infill and secures our water future. I led the charge against SB1070, and just last year I was proud to establish a César Chavez Holiday and Day of Service to honor an Arizona icon.	”
—Regina Romero

Noteworthy events

Events and activity following the death of George Floyd

See also: Events following the death of George Floyd and responses in select cities from May 29-31, 2020

Romero was mayor of Tucson during the weekend of May 29-31, 2020, when events and activity took place in cities across the U.S. following the death of George Floyd. Events in Tucson, Arizona, began on Friday, May 29, 2020. On May 31, Gov. Doug Ducey (R) issued a statewide curfew. The national guard was not deployed.

To read more about the death of George Floyd and subsequent events, click [show] to the right.

On May 25, 2020, Minneapolis police officers arrested Floyd, a Black man, after receiving a call that he had made a purchase with a counterfeit $20 bill. Floyd died after Derek Chauvin, a white officer, arrived at the scene and pressed his knee onto Floyd's neck as Floyd laid face-down on the street in handcuffs. Both the Hennepin County Medical Examiner and an independent autopsy conducted by Floyd's family ruled Floyd's death as a homicide stemming from the incident. The medical examiner's report, prepared by Dr. Michael Baden and Dr. Allecia Wilson, said that it was "not a legal determination of culpability or intent, and should not be used to usurp the judicial process." On April 20, 2021, Chauvin was found guilty of murder and manslaughter in relation to Floyd's death. Floyd's death was filmed and shared widely, leading to activity regarding racism, civil rights, and police use of force. The first events took place in Minneapolis-St. Paul on May 26. An event in Chicago organized by Chance the Rapper and Rev. Michael Pfleger took place the same day, making it the first major city outside of Minneapolis to host an event in response to Floyd's death.

Personal

Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Romero and her husband Ruben Reyes have two children, Emiliano and Luciana.

See also

2023 Elections

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by Jonathan Rothschild (D)	Mayor of Tucson 2019-Present	Succeeded by -
Preceded by -	Tucson City Council Ward 1 2007-2019	Succeeded by -