A bill which would create permanent memorials at Arizona’s state capitol honoring both conservative activist Charlie Kirk and late investigative reporter Don Bolles has sparked a debate among lawmakers.
Senate Bill 1686, sponsored by Republican Sen. Jake Hoffman, would rename the Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza to the Wesley Bolin and Charlie Kirk Freedom Plaza and authorize memorials for both Kirk and Bolles to be placed near the state capitol building. The Arizona Legislative Council would oversee final design approvals and the placement of the memorials.
The bill has already cleared major hurdles, passing the Senate in a narrow 16‑14 vote and winning approval from the House Government Committee. It now awaits a final roll-call vote in the full House before heading to Governor Katie Hobbs for a decision, who Friday vetoed a proposal to name a highway in Arizona after Kirk.
Bolles, a reporter for The Arizona Republic, was killed in June 1976 while probing a suspicious land deal tied to organized crime. In recent years, lawmakers have proposed memorials to honor Bolles’ work and sacrifice, but these efforts have repeatedly stalled. The proposals never advanced out of Hoffman’s committee and did not receive a formal hearing, leaving Bolles without official recognition at the state capitol despite his historic significance in Arizona journalism.
Meanwhile Turning Point USA founder Kirk, who called Arizona home, was shot and killed while speaking at a university event in September 2025. Since then, several states have considered ways to honor his legacy, despite his controversial views, including criticisms of the Civil Rights Act and Martin Luther King Jr., spreading COVID-19 misinformation and promoting false 2020 election claims.
The bill ties any memorial to Bolles to one for Kirk, Arizona’s Family reports
A memorial for Kirk has split lawmakers, however. Hoffman has hailed Kirk as a defender of the First Amendment and civil rights, while State Rep. Aaron Márquez, a Democrat, highlighted conservative thinker’s controversial comments on the Civil Rights Act.
"Wesley Bolin Plaza has always been a place where Arizonans gather to speak, debate, and engage in civil discourse," Hoffman said in a statement, per the Arizona Senate Republicans website. "By renaming this plaza and authorizing memorials for Charlie Kirk and Don Bolles, we are recognizing two very different individuals who shared something fundamental in common—a love for our constitutionally protected civil liberties. Both were killed because of their work and their willingness to speak freely. This legislation ensures their lives and sacrifices are remembered in a way that is respectful, orderly, and entirely privately funded, while preserving the integrity of our Capitol grounds."
“I did want to point out that Mr. Kirk did call the civil rights act of 1960s, he said, ‘We made a huge mistake when we passed the civil rights act of the 1960s,’” State Rep. Aaron Márquez of District 5 said in committee, AZ Family reports.
The fate of the Bolles memorial may ultimately rest with Hobbs. She has previously vetoed other Kirk‑related honors, including a specialty license plate, on the grounds that such measures can insert partisan politics into what should be nonpartisan government functions.
The governor previously called Kirk’s death “horrific” in a statement at the time of his death, saying in full, “I am deeply saddened by the news of the assassination of Charlie Kirk. I am saddened for Charlie’s family, friends, and Arizonans as they mourn his loss, and I am saddened for our country as our politics have descended into horrific violence. This tragedy is not about who Charlie Kirk supported politically.”
“It is about the devastating loss of a father, a neighbor, and an Arizonan who called this state home, and whose life was cut short by senseless violence. We must stand together in rejecting violence, lowering the temperature of our politics, and recommitting ourselves to the values of civility, respect, and community that American democracy requires,” Hobbs concluded.
A Hobbs spokesperson declined to comment when contacted by The Independent, citing a policy against addressing pending legislation.
The Independent has contacted Hoffman and Márquez for comment.
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