Kevin Volk
Kevin Volk is a first time candidate running for the State House. Kevin is a community leader, former teacher, and business owner. He was born and raised in Tucson, at the base of the Catalina Mountains. He attended public elementary and middle school in northeastern Tucson, then followed family tradition to attend Salpointe High School.
After graduation, he moved to Rhode Island to attend Brown University, where he graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Economics.
Following college, he served as a 5th grade public school teacher in the East Side of San Jose, California; interned for Representative Gabby Giffords taking in constituent communication in Congress; worked as an English language educator in Aguascalientes, Mexico, on a Fulbright scholarship, and helped former Governor Tim Kaine’s campaign for Senate in Virginia.
After his time out of state, Kevin moved back home to Southern Arizona, where he became the general manager of a local retail business. Then he joined family firm Volk Company as a real estate agent focused on bringing people together for win-win deals for small businesses.
Now Kevin is dedicated to development and re-development of commercial and housing properties, and has founded a small business to create affordable, sustainable prefabricated housing units from a manufacturing facility in Tucson.
Kevin is passionate about learning about the issues that affect Arizonans and interacting with experts to help come up with solutions. He is a graduate of Greater Tucson Leadership and was selected as one of the Southern Arizona recipients of the prestigious Flinn-Brown Fellowship for civic leadership in Arizona. In 2022, he received the inaugural Business Champion for Early Education Award from United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona.
On the Issues
Bring Living Costs Down
Higher costs of living in housing, energy, and food are eating away at our incomes and hurting our quality of life.
Instead of slogans and budget gimmicks, we need to focus on solutions that will bring down the costs of living over the long-term – unlocking housing innovation and affordability, applying technology to bring down energy costs, and increasing the efficiency of our state’s agriculture.
Invest in Education
In our district and across the state, we have incredible schools – whether community, charter, or private. But too many children are in schools that aren’t equipped to give them the opportunity to succeed.
We need to expand access to high-quality early childhood education and kindergarten to attack the achievement gap early and give parents the freedom to enter the workforce if they choose to. We need to pay teachers a wage that matches their importance and fully staff our schools. And we need to track all state spending to make sure our taxpayer dollars are doing the most good for our children and families.
Secure our Water Future
Tucson has been a leader in groundwater management for decades. Meanwhile, the state has kicked the can down the road for decades, threatening our water future.
We must take action to incentivize smarter water usage, invest in high-return technologies for water conservation, and work on diversifying our water supply for the long term.
Restore Reproductive Freedom
Reproductive freedom is under attack in Arizona. With the overturning of Roe v. Wade, extreme legislators and special interest groups are advocating for banning abortions, even going so far as to push for the return of laws that were passed before we became a state!
Here in Arizona, we believe strongly in individual freedom. That includes the right of individuals to make reproductive and health care decisions with their doctor and their loved ones, free from government interference. We must restore and protect reproductive freedom so that every person can make this deeply personal decision.
Why This Race Is Important
Republicans currently hold a 31-29 majority in the Arizona State House. The race that was the closest that Democrats lost in 2022, was in LD 17, where Kevin is the only Democrat running – as a single-shot. In 2022, two Democrats filed which split the vote and allowed for Republicans to narrowly win. Born and raised in the district, he has a strong narrative against the far-right Republicans that currently represent this community. If Kevin is successful in November, this would be the majority-making seat, giving Democrats control of the AZ House of Representatives for the first time since the 1960s. With a Democratic governor, and a path to flip the AZ Senate, this seat could determine if there is a blue trifecta come 2025.
Election Timeline
Last day to register for primary: July 1, 2024
Deadline to request absentee ballot (primary) July 19, 2024
Date of primary: July 30, 2024
Last day to register for general: October 7, 2024
Deadline to request absentee ballot (general) October 25, 2024
Date of general: November 5, 2024
About the District
Kevin is running for the AZ House of Representatives in LD 17, a district that Democrats narrowly lost in 2022. Arizona’s 17th legislative district consists of southern portions of Pinal county and the northeast portion of Pima County, encompassing the municipalities of Tucson, Oro Valley, Marana, Saddlebrooks and Vail.
As a third generation Tusconian, Kevin knows this community and understands the issues that are impacting his neighbors, from water, to affordable housing, to protecting a women’s right to choose. If successful this fall, this flip would be one of two needed for Democrats to take control of the AZ House for the first time since 1966.
Past Results in District
2022 State Senate Results:
Democrat: 48.76%
Republican: 51.24%
2022 U.S. Senate Results:
Democrat: 51.80%
Republican: 46.52%
2022 Governor Results:
Democrat: 50.24%
Republican: 49.76%
2020 Presidential Results:
Biden: 47.13%
Trump: 51.43%
About the Opponent
Rep. Rachel Jones currently holds the House seat in District 17 and is an extreme MAGA candidate. She has been endorsed by VFAF Veterans for Trump, and sponsored Resolution 2055, a declaration that would pre-appoint Arizona’s electors to ensure that they would vote for Trump, regardless of the results of the popular vote. Issues include Campus Carry, allowing students, professors and visitors to protect themselves on college campuses by allowing concealed carry;fighting the “woke agenda” in schools; pro-life fighting for the unborn; and more extreme far-right policies.
Why Arizona is important
Democrats need 2 seats in the State House and Senate to gain a majority and a Democratic trifecta! We must elect Kevin to the State House in this majority making district to defend democracy and protect abortion in this important Presidential & US Senate battleground state.
Candidate in the News
“I’m interested in problem-solving, not extreme partisanship. I’m not looking to only highlight issues and inflame tensions. I’m looking to tackle issues and solve problems. That’s my whole reason for being in this race, and that will be my focus as a state legislator.”
Arizona opinion: The people – not politicians – should choose our country’s next president
Forget the presidential race. Statehouses are where it’s at.
Pima Dems stumble in search for challenger to Az Sen. Justine Wadsack
“The voters of this district, like so many districts, just want common-sense folks who care about solving the problems and want to get to work,” Volk said. “I do see a rejection of the extremism in the results from last cycle, and I’m hearing a real frustration and anger from the constituents that I’m talking to about the extreme turn of the current legislature under Republican leadership.”