Arizona's 2026 governor's race has become a test case for Latter-day Saint political identity, with both major-party candidates openly identifying as members of the Church. Democratic incumbent Katie Hobbs and Republican challenger Andy Biggs are both practicing Latter-day Saints, forcing a heavily LDS electorate in parts of Arizona to weigh party allegiance against shared religious identity in a race that has turned unusually personal.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports the dynamic has split Mormon voters in ways that echo but intensify the 2012 Romney-Reid divide, when two high-profile LDS figures represented opposing parties. In Arizona, where Latter-day Saints make up roughly 6% of the population but concentrate heavily in suburban Phoenix and rural areas, both campaigns are explicitly courting LDS voters. Hobbs has emphasized her service in Relief Society and her family's pioneer heritage, while Biggs has leaned on his visibility in the Church's Arizona stake system and his voting record on religious-liberty issues.

The race has grown bitter, with Hobbs accusing Biggs of being soft on FLDS abuses during his time in Congress — a charge Biggs has called a distortion of his record. Interviews with Arizona members reveal a fracture: some prioritize shared faith and see Biggs as more aligned with LDS values on abortion and marriage, while others view Hobbs as better representing the Church's recent emphasis on refugees, immigrants, and care for the vulnerable. The outcome will signal whether partisan identity or religious commonality carries more weight when both candidates claim the same faith.