Michelle Ugenti-Rita


Michelle Ugenti-Rita is an American politician and a Republican member of the Arizona State Senate representing District 23 since January 14, 2019. She previously served in the Arizona House of Representatives from 2013 to 2019. Ugenti served consecutively from January 10, 2011 until January 14, 2013 in the District 8 seat.

Education

Ugenti graduated from Arizona State University.

Career

In 2017, Ugenti was the only Republican to oppose a 'Blue Lives Matter' bill that toughens penalties for assaulting off-duty police.
In January 2019, she sponsored legislation which would prohibit voters who received early vote ballots from casting those votes at polling places before or on election day. Election officials from both parties, as well as voting rights advocates, opposed the legislation, saying that it solves no problem and with some saying it amounted to voter suppression. In 2018, about 228,000 voters had cast their early vote ballots on election day itself, but would be prohibited from doing so under the proposed law.
Ugenti has sponsored a number of bills making it harder to put ballot initiatives up to voters.

Elections