2026 Election: Rep. Andy Biggs picks Sine Kerr as GOP nominee for Lt. Governor

PHOENIX - Republican gubernatorial nominee Rep. Andy Biggs has announced a former state senator as his nominee for Lieutenant Governor.

In a July 31 news release, Biggs announced his selection of Sine Kerr, a Buckeye dairy farmer and former Arizona Senate Majority Whip. Kerr most recently served in a post with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency as the state executive director for Arizona.

What they're saying:

"I am thrilled to have Sine Kerr as my running mate and Arizona’s first nominee to be Lieutenant Governor," Biggs said in a statement. "Sine knows Arizona’s agriculture community as well as anyone and has the respect of farmers, ranchers, and policy makers from around the state. She’s worked across the aisle to get things done at the Legislature, from spearheading the successful passage of the 2022 ‘water protection’ bill to her sponsorship of ‘Kayleigh’s Law’, a landmark piece of legislation that protects victims of sex crimes from being harassed or contacted by their abuser. Sine, her wonderful husband Bill, and her four children and twelve grandchildren are the embodiment of Arizona values and they have lived the American Dream in the West Valley. She will be a great running mate and a fantastic Lieutenant Governor for every Arizonan."

Sine Kerr's full statement

"I am truly honored to join this campaign and work alongside Andy Biggs to Restore the American Dream in the great state of Arizona. My husband Bill and I have been so fortunate to build a business, raise our family, and give back to our community all here in Buckeye, but we don’t take our successes and blessings for granted. Arizona’s rural communities have come under attack from Democrat Katie Hobbs and her allies, prioritizing the demands of ideologues over protecting our state’s agriculture community. From the more than 40 years I’ve worked as a farmer to representing rural communities in the West Valley out to Yuma, I know what our ranchers and farmers need to be successful and pass on their legacy to the next generation. Rural Arizona will always have a seat at the table in a Biggs-Kerr Administration and I’m looking forward to rallying rural communities across our state to deliver a win for Andy Biggs in November."

The backstory:

The 2026 Election will be the first with an Arizona Lieutenant Governor. Currently, Arizona does not have a Lieutenant Governor. In the event a governor cannot carry out their duties, the Secretary of State steps in.

In June 2026, we reported that a number of the state’s governors took the office without being elected.

"We had had every form of trigger of the line of succession. From impeachment, to someone passing away, to being indicted, to resigning to become another, like the Department of Homeland Security chief like Jan Napolitano," State Sen. J.D. Mesnard said.

Dig deeper:

For the first time in state history, Arizona is joining 45 other states by creating the office of lieutenant governor after voters approved the change in 2022. Like the vice president, the lieutenant governor will be next in line to lead the state should the incumbent die, resign, or be removed from office.

Before this announcement, Kerr served in the Trump administration as Arizona's executive director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency. Prior to that role, she served as a state senator, and she is currently a dairy farmer in Buckeye.

Biggs says about 70 or more people were vying for the job of lieutenant governor.

Political consultant Stan Barnes says a lieutenant governor pick is not likely to sway many voters, but the wrong choice could hurt a campaign. He says Kerr's background as a dairy farmer, along with her work on water policy in the legislature, could give Biggs an edge with more rural voters.

Kerr says the work of introducing herself to Arizona voters begins.

"We start tomorrow. Bright and early, we will be up in Flagstaff. What I love to do is be with the people, so I'll go anywhere along with Andy Biggs, and we are going to blanket the state and let the people know that we really care," Kerr said.

However, political consultant Stan Barnes with Copper State Consulting says one major question still remains: What powers will the lieutenant governor actually have?

It will be up to whoever is elected governor to determine the role that the lieutenant governor plays, which could include running a state department or helping lobby for votes. Biggs says he chose Kerr for her leadership and expertise.

While Arizona went more than a century without a lieutenant governor, Barnes says voters ultimately decided it was time for a change.

"The importance here is that the lieutenant governor is the same party as the governor and in our original Arizona constitution that was not always the case. The Secretary of State was sometimes a different party than the governor," Barnes said. "She is a rural Buckeye person, and you never know, but the rural vote in Arizona, which is not the largest part of the vote, could actually turn the election one way or the other."

The other side:

Biggs' opponent, incumbent Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs, has not announced her pick, but that didn't stop her campaign from releasing the following fiery statement on Kerr's selection: "All you need to know about Sine Kerr is that she is so extreme she agreed to be the running mate of Andy Biggs—a Washington insider who sided with a corrupt pedophile cult, shielded sex traffickers, covered for Jeffrey Epstein, stood with the powerful and well-connected, and backed policies that raise grocery and gas costs for Arizona families."

2026 ElectionsAndy BiggsArizona PoliticsPhoenixNews