Arizona’s place in the next round of federal court fights will be set on the November ballot

A fast-changing federal immigration docket and a stalled Congress are again pushing policy fights into court, and Arizona’s role in those cases will turn on who wins the attorney general’s race this fall. In the same week a new federal asylum rule took immediate effect, a Senate effort to fast-track protections for some Temporary Protected Status holders failed to clear a procedural hurdle, setting up the next venue for these disputes: multistate lawsuits led by state attorneys general.

According to the Arizona Capitol Times, coordinated litigation by attorneys general has become a dominant driver of federal policy outcomes, with both parties using coalitions to halt or rework presidential initiatives and corporate practices. Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes “has joined around 60 multistate lawsuits, 46 of which have been filed against the Trump administration,” the paper reported, and her Republican challenger, Senate President Warren Petersen, would likely shift the state’s litigation posture if elected. https://azcapitoltimes.com/news/2026/07/29/multistate-litigation-a-driving-force-in-federal-policy/

On immigration, the Arizona Mirror reported that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published a rule allowing asylum officers to bypass interviews and send cases directly to an immigration judge, expediting denials and deportations. The rule took effect immediately. In Congress, Maryland Democrat Chris Van Hollen sought unanimous consent to advance a bill creating a legal pathway for some TPS holders from Haiti and Syria, but a Missouri Republican objected, blocking the fast track, the Mirror reported. https://azmirror.com/2026/07/28/repub/new-trump-asylum-rule-could-push-444000-cases-toward-quick-denials-and-deportations/ and https://azmirror.com/2026/07/29/repub/senate-republican-blocks-fast-track-bill-shielding-haitian-syrian-tps-holders/

The legal consequences of these policy shifts will be shaped by which multistate coalitions assemble and where they file. Political scientist Paul Nolette told the Capitol Times that AG coalitions now operate like “a machine” that did not exist two decades ago, noting their growing influence as a “thorn in the side” of the White House when the other party holds state offices. His research cited by the paper reports Democratic AGs prevailed in 83 percent of cases against Trump’s first-term policies, while Republican AGs prevailed in 74 percent of cases against Biden.

The Capitol Times also cataloged outcomes where multistate suits produced immediate remedies. After President Trump’s second inauguration, states sued over an executive order attempting to eliminate birthright citizenship; a federal district court issued a nationwide stop and the Ninth Circuit later ruled the order unconstitutional, the paper reported. Coalitions also secured rulings halting a shutdown-era refusal to fund SNAP, striking down an executive order restricting mail-in voting and voter eligibility, and blocking a law cutting Medicare and Medicaid funding to providers of gender-affirming care. The Democratic Attorneys General Association, cited in the report, tallied 120 lawsuits filed against the Trump administration during his second term, with multistate coalitions winning, at least initially, in 63 of 77 rulings so far.

Mayes has emphasized the cost and capacity rationale for teaming up. Her spokesperson, Richie Taylor, told the Capitol Times that multistate work “makes good use of tax dollars,” pooling expertise where Arizona’s office lacks resources, citing antitrust as one gap. Arizona has joined suits targeting Meta, Live Nation and Ticketmaster, Apple, John Deere, Walmart, Zillow and Redfin, Paramount and Warner Bros, and the Kroger and Albertsons merger, in addition to federal disputes over tariffs, mail-in voting restrictions, birthright citizenship, and access to state election data, the paper reported.

Republicans use the same toolbox. Former Attorney General Mark Brnovich frequently joined GOP coalitions, and Petersen, as Senate president, has sought standing for the Legislature to defend state laws and filed multiple amicus briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court in support of Republican multistate litigation, according to the Capitol Times. The paper said Petersen did not respond to multiple requests for comment about how he would deploy multistate litigation if elected AG.

From a rule-of-law perspective, authority, remedy, cost, and outcome are the right measures here. State AGs have independent authority to choose targets and forums. Remedies in these cases often include preliminary orders that stop federal rules nationwide while merits are litigated, which can quickly reset policy on the ground. Coalition work can cut costs and expand capacity, though it also raises stakes around venue selection and the breadth of injunctions. Outcomes, as cataloged by Nolette and party committees, show states can and do win at scale.

That template is likely to define the next set of immigration fights. The asylum processing rule the Mirror described is the kind of procedural shift that often draws immediate multistate challenges, while the Senate’s failure to fast-track TPS protections leaves relief to the executive rulebook and the courts. The Capitol Times reporting underscores that Arizona’s alignment is not a minor variable. If Mayes is reelected, the state’s docket will likely track Democratic coalitions. If Petersen wins, the paper suggests a pivot that would reorient Arizona toward Republican-led challenges and defenses.

Voters are not simply choosing a lawyer. They are choosing how Arizona wields state power in federal court, what remedies it seeks, and which policies it is willing to halt or defend. With success rates that approach three out of four in recent years, multistate litigation delivers outcomes. The open question for Arizona is which outcomes it wants to buy with its name on the caption and its resources in the fight.

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