Aug 7, 2025 - News
Arizona History Showdown: Final Four edition
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We're down to the final four of the Arizona History Showdown.
How it works: Click here to vote in the third round. Voting closes at 5pm.
- We'll show you the results in Friday's Axios Phoenix.
State of play: Round 4 features matchups between, arguably, Arizona's four most famous political figures.
- Barry Goldwater faces Sandra Day O'Connor, while John McCain goes head-to-head against Carl Hayden.
Flashback: Goldwater and O'Connor had a long history.
- The two were neighbors in Paradise Valley, and O'Connor aided Goldwater's first U.S. Senate campaign in 1958.
- Goldwater called President Reagan to urge him to appoint O'Connor to the U.S. Supreme Court, and became a leading supporter when her nomination faced criticism from the right.
Catch up quick: We combined the two 16-entry brackets we started with into one after the first round, but you can see the results of the first round of voting here.