Former congressional candidate Jevin Hodge appointed to vacated Arizona House seat

PHOENIX — The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors announced Wednesday former congressional candidate Jevin Hodge was appointed to the Arizona House of Representatives, replacing the departed Athena Salman.

Hodge will serve District 8 through 2024. The position is up for election in November’s general election.

The Tempe native was selected from a list of three candidates and is a Democrat like Salman, which is required for a replacement under Arizona law.

“I am humbled by this appointment and grateful to all who supported me,” Hodge said in a press release. “Now, it’s time to get to work. My door is open to anyone who wants to make a difference for Arizona.”

Who is Jevin Hodge?

Hodge works as the director of national engagement, partnerships and innovation for consulting firm LINK Strategic Partners. He also serves as president and board chairman for the nonprofit Booker T. Washington Child Development Center.

He also used to be the president of the Tempe Union High School Education Foundation.

Politically, Hodge most recently ran to unseat Republican Rep. David Schweikert in Arizona’s 1st Congressional District in 2022. He lost by less than a percentage point.

Hodge was also defeated by Republican Jack Sellers for a Maricopa County Board of Supervisors role in 2020.

“Jevin Hodge has proven himself to be an independent thinker and business advocate who puts community wellbeing ahead of politics,” Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman Thomas Galvin said in a press release.

“I appreciated his thoughtful answers to my questionnaire, and I believe he will be a voice of reason and a potential consensus builder at the state Capitol.”

Why did Athena Salman step down?

Salman stepped down at the end of December to work as director of Arizona campaigns for Reproductive Freedom For All, a nonprofit political action and advocacy organization formerly known as NARAL Pro-Choice America.

“The right to decide if, when and how to start and grow your family faces the largest threat in generations,” Salman said in a press release. “We are one bad court decision away from a 160-year-old total ban on abortion being reinstated in Arizona.

“When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, I committed to do everything in my power to restore abortion rights in the United States of America.”

The Arizona Supreme Court started hearing a case in December to determine whether a 1864 near-total abortion ban should be put into effect.

Salman was first elected to the Arizona House of Representatives in 2016. Her husband, Juan Mendez, is a state senator for the same district, which includes parts of Tempe, Phoenix, Mesa, Scottsdale, and the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.

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