ABSTRACT
Arizona Democrats were disappointed as presidential election results came in on the night of 8 November, 2016: Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton by 91,000 votes. In recent years, restrictionist sentiment has abated, diminishing in proportion to the slowing of unauthorized entries into Arizona, as well as the rising concern among Republican legislators and business allies that restrictionist policies are too costly economically and politically. Consistent with restrictionist movements in other states, anti-immigrant fervor ran hottest in the suburban communities outside of central Phoenix, which became the epicenter of a restrictionist backlash that emerged in the early and mid-2000s. In spite of the dangers and conflicted interests, a law enforcement approach to immigration would increasingly find a receptive audience in the state Republican Party in the early 2000s. In January 2007, Pullen was elected chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, narrowly defeating a more moderate opponent and signaling the ascendancy of the anti-immigration wing of the party.
