Former Arizona lawmaker Alan Stephens dies at 73; career mixed politics, public service

Corrections and clarifications: In a previous version of this article, the last name of Mary Rose Wilcox was misspelled.

Former state Senate majority leader and rural advocate Alan Stephens died Aug. 16, leaving a legacy that mixed political passions with a drive to boost some of Arizona's most-overlooked areas.

Stephens, 73, served in the state Senate from 1985-93, including two years as majority leader when the Democrats took control of the chamber.

After an unsuccessful bid for a congressional seat in 1992, Stephens stepped into a number of administrative roles, including serving as co-chief of staff duties for Democratic Gov. Janet Napolitano. He spent years as Arizona director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Economic and Community Development Services office.

Stephens' career was marked by a mix of politics and public service. He got an insider's view of how government works when he interned with then-Gov. Bruce Babbitt's budget director in 1975.

Stephens ran several campaigns before becoming a candidate himself in a 1982 run for the Legislature.

He won his state Senate seat on his second try in 1984, was elected minority leader in 1987 and became majority leader after the 1990 election.

While in the Senate, Stephens was implicated in the AzScam civil racketeering scandal, but the county attorney who brought the charges dropped Stephens from the case for lack of evidence.

Pete Rios, who was Senate president at the time, said Stephens was the "stalwart" of the caucus.

“He was very very politically savvy," Rios said. "He was a bright individual."

The two first joined forces in the early 1980s, when they shared political strategy to oust Democrats who had sided with Republicans to override Democratic Gov. Babbitt's veto of the 1980 redistricting maps. Their common message: Kick out the lawmakers who were looking out for themselves, not the people.

Dennis Burke, who shared chief of staff duties with Stephens, said Stephens brought valuable connections to the Napolitano administration.

“He had a wonderful Rolodex because he knew so many people," Burke recalled. "He was constantly in a position of saying ‘I know that person, I can call them.’“

Stephens proved a valuable ally when Burke, as a staffer to U.S. Sen. Dennis DeConcini, held a hearing in Arizona on a legislation that sought to reduce the control oil companies had on gasoline production and pricing. He asked Stephens, then a state senator, to speak in favor of the bill, even as he cautioned oil producers would fight back. Stephens didn't flinch, Burke said.

“He had huge backbone, and he said this bill is the right thing to do and I’m glad the senator is doing it," Burke said.

But it was Stephens' work with the USDA's rural development agency that had the most impact, said Dianna Jennings, who worked with Stephens for years.

“Man, did he do stuff there," Jennings said. "Talk to the people in Yuma – he built a hospital in Yuma."

Stephens focused the office's work on tribal communities and the border, two areas that Jennings said often were overlooked. She recalled a project that brought running water to one tribal area, a first for that community.

Stephens directed federal aid to rebuild the water system in Yarnell after the town was hit hard by a wildfire in 2013, Claude Mattox, a former Phoenix city councilman and Yarnell property owner wrote on Facebook.

Mary Rose Wilcox, a longtime friend of Stephens and his wife, Leslie Hatfield, echoed the benefit Stephens brought to rural areas.

"He was so good for rural Arizona," said Wilcox, a former Maricopa County supervisor. "They loved him out there. He always made sure the small places got taken care of.”

Stephens served as the agency's director twice for Democratic presidents: during the Clinton administration, and, eight years later, when Barack Obama became president.

He retired in 2015 but remained active in political campaigns, Hatfield said. He also served on the boards of AARP and Labor's Community Services Agency, which focuses on the needs of the working poor in Arizona.

Stephens died at his central Phoenix home of complications from multiple myeloma, a diagnosis he fought for 11 years, Hatfield said.

Stephens was born in Trenton, New Jersey and attended Glassboro State College (now known as Rowan University) and later earned a degree in public administration from the University of West Virginia.

Hatfield said her husband chose to move to Arizona, sensing opportunity in a young state without hidebound traditions.

"You could make a big impact and be involved in constructive change," she said of his motivation to move west. "Here was a guy from New Jersey who just graduated from grad school, running a congressional campaign," she said, referring to Democrat Pat Fullinwider, who ran in 1976 against U.S. Rep. John Rhodes, then the minority leader in the House.

Stephens is survived by his wife and two grown sons, Alec and Ross.

The family plans a memorial in the latter half of September at Crosier Village at Seventh Street and Southern Avenue.

Reach the reporter at maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com or at 602-228-7566 and follow her on Threads as well as on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @maryjpitzl.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Alan Stephens, former Arizona lawmaker and rural advocate, dead at 73