In the aftermath of Election Day 2024, the conventional wisdom suggested not only that Republicans had entered an era of electoral dominance, but also that Democratic voters were demoralized, disheartened and prepared to withdraw from civic life for a long while. Following a series of 2025 special elections, those assumptions are quickly unraveling.

The latest test came in Arizona, where Democrat Adelita Grijalva won a congressional special election, winning the seat held by her late father. NBC News reported:

Grijalva, a former Pima County supervisor and Tucson school board member, captured Arizona’s 7th Congressional District, which includes Tucson, over Republican Daniel Butierez. She will serve out the remaining 15 months of Rep. Raúl Grijalva’s term after he died in March of complications during cancer treatment.

Once sworn in, Grijalva will be Arizona’s first-ever Latina congresswoman, and she’ll narrow the GOP majority in the U.S. House: Republicans will hold 219 seats to the Democrats’ 214, with two vacancies remaining.

Also of interest was the congresswoman-elect’s margin of victory: Last fall, Kamala Harris carried this Tucson-area district by 22 points, but based on the latest vote tallies, Grijalva appears to have won this week’s special election by nearly 40 points.