John Kavanagh
Republican · AZ · Arizona State Senator for Legislative District 3 and Senate Majority Leader
John Kavanagh is the Republican Arizona state senator for Legislative District 3 and Senate Majority Leader. First elected to the Legislature in 2006, he previously served on the Fountain Hills Town Council, worked 20 years as a Port Authority police officer and detective sergeant, taught criminal justice, and holds a Ph.D. in criminal justice from Rutgers University.
Track record
Environment and Public Health
· 1 record
Kavanagh voted for SB 1552, which required air-particle pollution controls in parts of central Arizona; the governor signed the bill.
April 9, 2007For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Anti-Corruption
· 1 record
Kavanagh voted for SB 1612, requiring companies seeking state contracts or grants to disclose specified things of value provided to the governor or related entities.
February 27, 2025For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Government Spending Reduction
· 2 records
Kavanagh voted against HB 2704, which authorized tax distributions for a new Arizona Diamondbacks stadium.
June 19, 2025For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh voted to establish an $8 million Arizona low-income housing tax-credit program.
February 18, 2020Against
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Public Safety and Crime Control
· 3 records
Kavanagh sponsored and voted for SB 1635, creating a misdemeanor for intentionally alerting a person to police activity to help that person avoid arrest.
March 2, 2026For
Source: azleg.gov · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh sponsored and voted for HB 2550, requiring a warning about penalties for false complaints before agencies accept complaints against peace officers; the governor signed it.
March 3, 2021For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh voted for and cosponsored SB 1366, applying aggravated-assault protections to off-duty police officers; the governor signed it.
February 20, 2017For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Housing Affordability
· 1 record
Kavanagh voted to establish an $8 million Arizona low-income housing tax-credit program.
February 18, 2020For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Public Education Quality
· 1 record
Kavanagh voted for and cosponsored SB 1332, expanding Arizona's empowerment-scholarship program to eligible Native American students.
February 19, 2015For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Women's Reproductive Rights
· 1 record
Kavanagh voted for and cosponsored SB 1600, establishing duties and criminal penalties involving infants born alive after attempted abortions; the governor vetoed it.
February 22, 2023Against
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Election Integrity
· 1 record
Kavanagh voted for HCR 2056, prohibiting election officials from receiving election-administration funding from foreign governments.
June 15, 2024For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Personal Income Tax Reduction
· 1 record
Kavanagh voted to align Arizona tax rates with federal tax-rate provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
January 15, 2026For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Data Privacy
· 1 record
Kavanagh sponsored and voted for SB 1078, prohibiting specified artificial-intelligence deepfakes.
February 29, 2024For
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Civil Rights
· 6 records
Kavanagh sponsored and voted for SB 1635, creating a misdemeanor for intentionally alerting a person to police activity to help that person avoid arrest.
March 2, 2026Against
Source: azleg.gov · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh voted to require Arizona law-enforcement agencies to notify federal immigration enforcement when a person without legal status is arrested.
February 23, 2026Against
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
A federal judge permanently enjoined Kavanagh-sponsored HB 2319 as unconstitutional under the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
July 21, 2023Against
Source: azcapitoltimes.com · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh sponsored HB 2319, restricting recording of police activity within eight feet after an officer orders a person to stop; the governor signed it.
July 6, 2022Against
Source: azleg.gov · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh voted for SB 1167, barring certain government contracts with entities participating in a boycott of Israel.
April 10, 2019Against
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh was an introduced sponsor of SB 1070, expanding state and local enforcement involving undocumented immigration; the governor signed the bill.
January 13, 2010Against
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Corporate Accountability
· 1 record
Kavanagh cosponsored HB 2912, raising the liability threshold for COVID-19 claims against businesses and institutions; the House passed it.
May 21, 2020Against
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
General
· 7 records
Kavanagh filed for the 2026 Republican primary for Arizona State Senate District 3 with 1,275 signatures.
March 16, 2026
Source: azsos.gov · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh won reelection to Arizona Senate District 3 with 110,048 votes.
November 5, 2024
Source: multistate.us · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh won election to the Arizona House in Legislative District 23.
November 6, 2018
Source: multistate.us · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh served as president pro tempore of the Arizona Senate during the 2017-2019 period.
January 9, 2017
Source: justfacts.votesmart.org · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh won election to the Arizona Senate in Legislative District 23.
November 4, 2014
Source: multistate.us · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh won election to the Arizona House in newly drawn Legislative District 23.
November 6, 2012
Source: elections.maricopa.gov · researched July 18, 2026
Kavanagh won election to the Arizona House in Legislative District 8, beginning his state legislative service in 2007.
November 7, 2006
Source: apps.azsos.gov · researched July 18, 2026
Elections
- State Senator - District No. 3 · July 21, 2026 · State Senate District 3; Arizona · incumbent
Profile last researched July 18, 2026.