Arizona Senate President Petersen Builds New GOP Policy Team, Ready for Upcoming Legislative Session

Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen has created his Republican leadership team, bringing in new policy advisors and promoting existing staff to strengthen support for the GOP majority's legislative goals.

The changes impact multiple key positions that support 17 Republican state senators as they work on conservative policy initiatives across various committees, as shown through a recent press release. 

"These new additions and promotions ensure that the Arizona Senate Majority Caucus has one of the most experienced and capable legislative staff teams in the country," Warren Petersen stated.

Key Staff Changes

Several significant appointments and promotions take effect this fall:

Fletcher Montzingo moves up to Deputy Chief of Staff after serving six years with the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committees. He will oversee the new Senate Committee on Appropriations & Transportation while continuing tax policy work and daily operations management.

Brooke Huppenthal joins as Deputy General Counsel on September 15, bringing experience as a Tennessee Assistant Attorney General and former law clerk to Arizona Supreme Court Justice Clint Bolick. She will advise the Judiciary & Elections Committee and the Military Affairs & Border Security Committee.

Simone Westbrook Hall starts as Senior Policy Advisor for the Natural Resources, Energy & Water, and Public Safety committees. She previously served as the state's Deputy Land Commissioner with expertise in natural resource and land use policy.

Abigail McLain begins September 8 as Policy Advisor for the Finance and Health & Human Services committees. The Grand Canyon University graduate recently worked on First Amendment policy at Alliance Defending Freedom.

Complete Leadership Structure

The whole majority of the staff team includes:

• Rusty Crandall as General Counsel, overseeing multiple committees, including Director Nominations and Ethics
• Kim Quintero is directing communications operations
• Alayna Koralski as Deputy Communications Director and Federalism Committee advisor
• Blaze Baggs advising Health & Human Services and Government committees
• Emma Blair supports the Education, Appropriations & Transportation, and Regulatory Affairs committees
• Gina Jenkins serving as Senior Executive Assistant

Strategic Focus

The staff restructuring comes as the Republican majority prepares for the legislative session, with team members assigned to cover major policy areas including budget matters, healthcare, education, natural resources, and election law, the press release informs. 

The majority caucus can then manage state operations and regulatory problems while managing several complicated policy projects together due to the enlarged team structure.