But if some rock-ribbed Republicans remain wary of the former Tucson City Councilman and erstwhile aid to lefty Congressman Raul Grijalva, his Jan. 15 campaign announcement gave them reason to be.
In the announcement, Glassman claimed he "broke the record for most funds raised in an off-year Attorney General's race," pulling in more than $1.3 million. What Glassman neglected to share is that he loaned himself $1 million of that total, according to a recent campaign filing with the Arizona Secretary of State's Office.
Glassman initially agreed to an interview for this piece, then suddenly stopped responding to inquiries.
Self-financing a campaign is nothing new to Glassman. Neither is losing them. When he ran as a Democrat to unseat Sen. John McCain in 2010, Glassman loaned himself $500,000. Glassman wound up winning only 34% of the vote, leaving a sour taste with Democrats (along with memories of a horrible, off-key singing campaign video).
Glassman pissed off a lot of Democrats who supported him after he reputedly promised he'd spend "anywhere from three to five million dollars" to take down McCain. That largesse was not forthcoming, and by all accounts, Glassman ran a shitty campaign. Staffers bailed right and left, describing the then-32-year-old Glassman as "a spoiled rich kid with a frat boy's sense of humor” who was prone to "out of control" temper tantrums.
The remainder of Glassman's time in public life has illustrated the sunk cost fallacy. Glassman ran unsuccessfully for chair of the Arizona Democratic Party and then switched affiliations. As a Republican, he ran for Arizona Corporation Commission and then Maricopa County Assessor, losing both times.
In 2022, Glassman sought the Republican nomination for AG, losing out to now-Rep. Abe Hamedeh by 10 points. In that race, Glassman loaned himself $1.75 million, per his campaign filings. His wealthy parents helped with the post-campaign debt, donating about the same amount in cash once the race was lost.
Hamedeh went on to lose the general election to Mayes by a mere 280 votes, which may be why Glassman thinks he has a shot against her in 2026.
Rodney Glassman has spent a lot of his own money campaigning for numerous political offices, mostly to no avail.
Gage Skidmore/Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0
What makes Rodney run?
New Times did not get to ask the University of Arizona law grad about the nature of his inherited wealth, which has made him the Harold Stassen of Arizona politics. But a former campaign staffer has insights to share.Glassman is the scion of the Britz family, which a 2002 Los Angeles Times story described as running "a multimillion-dollar empire that includes a petrochemical company, packinghouses, a cotton gin and tens of thousands of acres of irrigated cropland." That’s given Glassman access to a near-endless supply of money to finance his political aspirations.
Tucson Sentinel reporter and political columnist Blake Morlock worked as communications director on Glassman's 2010 run against McCain. In a 2018 column, Morlock revealed that Glassman had a guaranteed income of $300,000 per annum. The writer told New Times that he remembered going over the details with Glassman at the time and that the $300,000 was yearly interest on Glassman's trust fund.
"That amount absolutely may have changed since 2010," Morlock said. "In fact, if the amount hasn't changed, somebody's being stupid. The markets have quintupled or quadrupled since then."
Morlock suggested that Glassman shares Trump’s flexible ideology and quest for acclaim and political office. Glassman is "Trump without the charm," Morlock cracked, warning that the former boss "lacks any core beliefs." So do many, if not most, successful politicians. Glassman is just missing the "successful" part.
So, why does he keep running after so many disappointments?
One prominent Valley Republican, who asked not to be named, joked that Glassman is the type of person who "runs out in front of parades" and pretends to be the grand marshal. Republicans may like Glassman's volunteer work with the Boy Scouts, his service as an Air Force reservist and his multiple advanced degrees, despite accusations that Glassman plagiarized his doctoral dissertation. But they also view him as a pest.
This local GOP rainmaker said Glassman is constantly asking him to support his campaign, and he knows of other Republicans who have given Glassman money just to make him go away. (The anonymous Republican said he hasn't done likewise, at least yet.) Despite Glassman’s war chest, the GOP operative thinks likely primary opponent Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen will probably pants Glassman in 2026.
Of course, that would just leave Glassman ready to run again.
"There's something that makes him need this," said the politico. "Somehow, it's like his whole existence would be validated if he just made it into office. Weird."
