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AZ Briefing

YOUR MORNING NEWS ROUNDUP

Fri May 9 2025

Lorenzino Estrada | Digital Producer

Good morning, Arizona. Here’s what our reporters are working on and what you should know about what’s happening across the state before you start your day.

A Democratic state lawmaker and her former running mate used money from public campaign funds last year to pay her fiancé, a political consultant. State officials now want to know how the tens of thousands of dollars were spent.

More about penalties and fees that may be assessed and how the lawmaker and candidate blew off auditors and questions about finances.

SRP’s powerful new dredge at Granite Reef Dam

SRP’s new, state of the art dredge is all electric, and operates much faster and more efficiently than the older model, which was installed in the 1950s.

John Leos/The Republic

SRP now has a new tool for cleaning the dam: a state-of-the-art dredge to suck up the piles of sand. The dredge acts like a pool cleaner and is completely electric with upgraded computer screens.

If you like our work, please consider becoming a subscriber.

Today in history

Here are just some of the events on this date in the past.

•	On this day in 1754: The Pennsylvania Gazette published what is believed to be the first political cartoon. Attributed to Benjamin Franklin, it featured a snake in eight pieces, each labeled with the abbreviation of a U.S. colony (or region in the case of New England), and underneath were the words “JOIN, or DIE.”
•	In 1867: Sojourner Truth, a former slave who had escaped to freedom and become an advocate for the rights of Black Americans and women, spoke at the first meeting of the American Equal Rights Association in New York. As Black men were gaining some of their rights, Truth spoke of the need to press for the rights of Black women.
•	In 1914: At the urging of Congress, President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation declaring the second Sunday in May to be Mother’s Day. The next day, May 10, marked the first time it was celebrated as a national holiday in the United States, though some states had been celebrating mothers for years before the federal government joined in.
•	In 2012: President Barack Obama became the first sitting U.S. president to endorse same-sex marriage. “I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married,” Obama told ABC News.
•	In 2020: The U.S. unemployment rate reached its highest mark since the Great Depression, 14.7%.
•	In 2022: President Joe Biden signed the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022, which the previous month had passed unanimously in the Senate and by a vote of 417-10 in the House of Representatives. The legislation facilitated easier “loan and lease of defense articles” to the nation for its war with Russia, but it expired at the end of September 2023.

— William Cain, USA TODAY Network

8-year-old girl dies after crash on Loop 202 in Chandler

Here’s what we know about a crash in Chandler that partially closed the Loop 202 May 8 and left an 8-year-old dead.

READ MORE

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AZ Briefing: Arizona lawmaker used campaign funds to pay fiancé

AZ Briefing: Arizona lawmaker used campaign funds to pay…

AZ Briefing

Lorenzino Estrada | Digital Producer

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AZ Briefing: Arizona lawmaker used campaign funds to pay fiancé

AZ Briefing: Arizona lawmaker used campaign funds to pay…

AZ Briefing

Lorenzino Estrada | Digital Producer

Other big stories

SRP’s powerful new dredge at Granite Reef Dam

Today in history

TOP STORIES

8-year-old girl dies after crash on Loop 202 in Chandler

Dems block crypto bill as Sen. Gallego seeks more time

AZ apprentice program targets underserved for jobs

Here’s why flights are delayed at Sky Harbor today

These 5 Arizona beers were named among best in the world

Get GlobalPost FREE

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