Rep. Steve Montenegro elected AZ House Speaker despite controversial past [Video]

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — On Tuesday, House Republicans elected State Representative Steve Montenegro to become Arizona’s next Speaker of the House.

Montenegro, who serves LD29 covering Goodyear and Surprise, will become the first Hispanic to serve as Speaker of the House in Arizona history. House GOP members say Montenegro is committed to principle conservative leadership and will prioritize fiscal responsibility, safer communities, stronger families and other policies as Speaker.

Montenegro is no stranger to Arizona politics or controversy.

In 2018, Montenegro was accused of exchanging inappropriate text messages with a legislative staffer while he was serving as a State Senator.

When the story broke, Montenegro was running for Congress, and several top Republican figures in the state called for him to drop out of the race. He ended up finishing third in the primary.

Tom Ryan is a Chandler-based attorney who represented that staffer in 2018.

“Incredibly disappointed that he got chosen, but not surprised. It’s unfortunate that the Republicans in the …