FFRF AF endorses Daniel Hernandez for vacant seat in Ariz. 7th District

The FFRF Action Fund is pleased to endorse Daniel Hernandez in his bid for Arizona’s 7th congressional District, a vacant seat. This is a special election, and the Democratic primary is July 15.

Hernandez was an Arizona state representative from 2016 to 2023 and a Sunnyside (Arizona) Unified School District board member from 2011 to 2020. For eight years, Hernandez served as the youngest school board president in Sunnyside district history, where he stood up for students and teachers against extremist attacks on public education. Hernandez is openly nonreligious.

While in the Arizona Legislature, Hernandez twice received the Secular Star award, bestowed by Secular AZ for his outstanding work in protecting the separation of state and church. Hernandez shared that he has worked to safeguard state/church separation throughout his career because of his experience growing up gay in Arizona. It is essential to him that LGBTQ-plus youth are not influenced or conditioned to live in a Christian-centered or religion-centered society. He also co-founded the AZ LGBTQIA Legislative Caucus in 2017.

Hernandez supports the Department of Education mandating the separation of state and church within the U.S. public school system and asserts that abortion is a state/church issue that should be federally protected. Additionally, Hernandez aims to strengthen federal policies for the LGBTQ-plus community, including marriage and parental rights, in response to the threat posed by Christian right-wing ideological attacks in Congress.

While attending the University of Arizona, Hernandez interned for then-U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords, which led him to work in both advocacy and public service to improve Arizona communities. He has served as a program manager for Planned Parenthood’s Latinx outreach program and as the state director of Everytown for Gun Safety, advocating for gun violence prevention legislation. At Planned Parenthood, Hernandez worked on style guides for outreach efforts regarding abortion in various Spanish-speaking communities.

Hernandez is running against four opponents, with two candidates having a viable path to victory. The voter universe is very small, with an estimated 25,000 to 32,000 voters expected to take part in the general election. A candidate could win with as few as 10,000 votes in this election. Hernandez has prioritized a highly localized focus, addressing the issues that constituents care about most, such as the economy and Social Security, while connecting with local public officials. His campaign has knocked on the doors of every potential voter in the district, and 26 local officials and leaders have endorsed Hernandez.

Unions also have a strong presence in the district, and Hernandez has received eight union endorsements to date. In the 2024 election, although there was a significant swing toward Trump, AZ-07 was a +20 Harris district, so whichever Democrat wins the primary will likely secure the district.

Alongside a multitude of unions, local officials and local leaders, the FFRF Action Fund joins the Victory Fund, Equality Arizona, Congressional Equality PAC, Moms Demand Action, U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres and U.S. Rep. Eric Sorenson in endorsing Hernandez.

Please learn more about Hernandez by visiting his campaign website.

FFRF Action Fund is a 501(c)(4) organization that develops and advocates for legislation, regulations and government programs to preserve the constitutional principle of separation between state and church. It also advocates for the rights and views of nonbelievers, endorses candidates for political office, and publicizes the views of elected officials concerning religious liberty issues.