1/5

When Congressman Gallego first was elected in 2014, it was hailed as a big win for progressives. A former marine turned state lawmaker, Gallego beat out a corporate-friendly Democrat for an open house seat by putting together a coalition of center-left activist groups and labor organizations. Since entering Congress, Gallego has lost some of his old progressive aura, but that can probably be attributed as much to the left's increased confidence and ambition as to Gallego's turn to the center.

A Progressive Caucus member, Gallego's voting record on domestic policy is solid. He voted for the CPC's People's Budget and never breaks party lines to support conservative legislation. Though Gallego's foreign policy voting record is less hawkish then many of his fellow Democrats, it still leaves much to be desired. He initially ran for office on a fairly aggressive anti-war platform and was not shy in calling out Obama's foreign policy adventures. However, this progressive rhetoric is more than a little undercut by Gallego's votes to reauthorize the Patriot Act and provide the Pentagon a virtual blank check each year.

Gallego's sponsorship record is also a bit spotty. When it comes to bills on voting rights, criminal justice reform, and expanding healthcare, he is up there with the best of them. But Gallego always seems to be missing in action when the left is trying to muster support for an ambitious climate change or corporate regulatory policy. Most of the bills that Gallego personally introduces deal with immigration, veterans, and Native peoples. Important stuff, but hardly the red meat the left craves.

Where Gallego probably gets the most flack from the left is who he chooses to endorse. While most young progressives were lining up behind Bernie in 2016, Gallego was an early Clinton backer. After Trump won, Gallego was scathing in his criticism of Democratic leadership and called for Pelosi to step down as leader (which was good) but confusingly threw his support to Tim Ryan, who was running to Pelosi's right. Finally, in 2020 Gallego blundered his way through a series of embarrassing endorsements, first backing Eric Swalwell, then Kamala Harris, before finally settling on Joe Biden two weeks before the Arizona Primary. For an elected official who rose to power on the backs of progressives, he has an odd way of picking candidates to support.

Heavily Democratic and majority latin, AZ-07 covers a good chunk of Phoenix. It is doubtful that Democratic primary voters are going to oust an otherwise fine Congressman, because of some bad endorsements and substandard foreign policy. On kitchen table issues, Gallego does a decent job representing his working class district.