For years, Arizona Democrats have tried to distance themselves from Robert Rowley. They have discussed censuring him, barred him from meetings, attempted to remove him from party positions and condemned his online conduct. Yet Rowley continues to wield influence under one of the most recognizable names in LGBTQ+ politics: Stonewall Democrats of Arizona.

Named for the 1969 Stonewall Inn uprising in New York City — the catalyst for the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement — Stonewall Democratic organizations have existed across the country since the founding of the original Stonewall Democratic Club in Los Angeles in 1975. Their stated purpose is to amplify queer voices within the Democratic Party, elect pro-equality candidates and advocate for policies that protect and advance civil rights for queer Americans.

The Stonewall Democrats of Arizona, meanwhile, is a political action committee led by one man, Robert Rowley, who for years has been a source of controversy and disturbing behavior within the party. LOOKOUT spoke with multiple members of the Arizona Democratic Party who said Rowley misrepresents the party’s values and, for years, has been a thorn in the side of Democratic politics in Arizona.

Current and former party members said Rowley has shown a consistent pattern of erratic and offensive behavior. 

A review of Rowley’s social media presence also reveals persistent Islamophobic themes and violent messaging. Screenshots show that Rowley has referred to Palestinians as animals, or "palimals," and members of the Democratic party told LOOKOUT they have been physically threatened by him, including a throat-cutting gesture in front of a party member's child.

Despite the accusations, Rowley’s endorsements through the Stonewall Democrats of Arizona still turn heads in Arizona. The recent endorsement of state Rep. Alma Hernández — recently rebuked for her alignment with Republicans in the state House — is proudly placed on her site. The endorsement for Hernandez over the only queer candidate in the race, Rocque Perez, for the Legislative District 20 Senate race is Rowley’s latest move calling into question what the Stonewall Democrats of Arizona, and the man behind it, represent.

Rowley did not respond to repeated attempts to contact him for this article.

Who Is Robert Rowley?

The name "Stonewall Democrats of Arizona" implies a broad community mandate that the organization may not actually have; When the organization endorses or condemns a candidate, it is not clear that anyone other than Rowley has signed off.

The organization is, according to multiple Southern Arizona members of the Democratic Party, one man's platform: There is no visible democratic governance structure holding Rowley accountable, no membership vote on endorsements and no mechanism for the broader LGBTQ+ community to weigh in. ProPublica's 527 Explorer shows the organization has never electronically reported individual contributions or expenditures.

More recently, community members and Democratic activists have raised alarms of what they call racist posts Rowley made on Instagram about Middle Eastern people, including an image of a cockroach wearing a Muslim headdress, and repeating far-right Islamophobic claims that the civil rights group Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is a terrorist organization.

Rowley has led Stonewall Democrats of Arizona since he co-founded it with Richard Adams in 2014, registering it with the Arizona Secretary of State's Office as a political action committee.

Within months of the organization's founding, Rowley made headlines. In October 2014, he publicly posted a vulgar slur beneath a Facebook photo of Arizona state Rep. Catherine Miranda, a Latina Democrat. When confronted, Rowley didn't apologize. He doubled down, writing in a Facebook chat: "Sorry but I stand by my assessment, Catherine Miranda is a c-nt and she is going to be recalled."

The blowback was swift. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Fred DuVal, who served two terms on the Arizona Board of Regents, had enjoyed Rowley's endorsement and threw an LGBTQ+-oriented fundraiser that Rowley had helped promote. But he cut ties with the Stonewall Democrats of Arizona when the OUT For Fred Committee called Rowley's comments "offensive" and said they had "no place in civil public discourse."

Multiple political groups subsequently condemned Rowley’s behavior.

That was more than a decade ago. And Rowley's pattern of inflammatory online behavior has continued over the years.

"He can be very nice, obliging, polite, and he can be very rude," Barbara Tellman, a longtime Democratic Party member, told LOOKOUT. She said the party has considered censuring him and has barred him from entering some meetings. She stressed that his endorsement should carry no weight.

Andrew Gardner, a former precinct worker in the Democratic Party, said Rowley has "a long history of saying really unkind comments, veering towards misogynistic and racist."

More recently, community members and Democratic activists have raised alarms of what they call racist posts Rowley made on Instagram about Middle Eastern people, including an image of a cockroach wearing a Muslim headdress, and repeating far-right Islamophobic claims that the civil rights group Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is a terrorist organization.

Hector Jaramillo, former Legislative District 24 candidate for the state House, noted in an interview with LOOKOUT that his district is a majority-Latino district with Muslim residents and Arab American community members.

"It is very unfortunate that Stonewall Dems is spearheaded by someone who is against Islam or Arab Americans," Jaramillo said. "We do have people who identify as Muslim in our community. To see the good Stonewall Dems name tarnished by this one man is disheartening."

Jaramillo publicly rejected an endorsement from Rowley earlier this spring, writing on Facebook that he made his decision not because of Stonewall Democrats of Arizona’s "stated values, but because of its chair, Robert Rowley." Jaramillo continued, writing that Rowley "has posted hateful things about Muslim and Arab people, laughed at the deaths of others, and dehumanized the people of Palestine and Iran simply because they are seen as the 'opposition.' He has also called for the deportation of American members of Congress because of their proud heritage."

Jaramillo mentioned that when he confronted Stonewall Democrats of Arizona about the posts, he was sent a message to "Go f-ck yourself."

"Rowley has been an issue for more than a decade." - Arizona Democratic strategist

Rowley is also currently a precinct committeeperson for Legislative District 20 in Tucson, outside of his role as chairman of Stonewall Democrats of Arizona. Multiple Democratic state committee members — who, as precinct committeepersons, hold formal party standing — have tried to limit Rowley’s reach. Others have attempted to censure or remove him.

In 2017, Rowley faced two efforts to oust him from his position as a committeeperson. One letter from the same year, sent to the chair of the Pima County Democratic Party, pushed to have him removed from the party because he had endorsed a Republican candidate — the same action by Rep. Miranda that prompted him to call her a "c-nt" and led to his initial condemnation.

That same year, a separate effort tried to remove Rowley from his position because of his conduct and alleged embrace of political violence: "He viciously attacks members — not just in the Republican community, but in our community as well," according to an email from a Democratic committee member addressed to Alexis Tameron Kinsey, then-chair of the Arizona Democratic Party.

Tameron Kinsey responded, "I personally abhor inflammatory and divisive rhetoric, such as statements Mr. Rowley is accused of making." However, Tameron Kinsey continued, "as the ADP State Chair, I do not have the authority via state law or our bylaws to remove or initiate the removal of a state committee member."

In 2025, Rowley was temporarily suspended from the Arizona Democratic Party’s Jewish Caucus Slack workspace "because of his violations of the Slack Community Guidelines," according to an email from the chair of the caucus shared with LOOKOUT.

On Instagram, Rowley recently posted an A.I.-generated video depicting Jesus bludgeoning President Trump in the head, after which he plunges into a fiery volcano. The post has since been removed. Earlier, in 2017, Gardner – the former precinct worker — said that at a public meeting, Rowley made a menacing throat-cutting gesture at him. Gardner said that his son was sitting next to him at the time Rowley made the threatening gesture.

The Race in LD20

Legislative District 20 in Tucson is one of the most reliably Democratic districts in Arizona. The July 21, 2026, primary is, for all practical purposes, the general election.

The seat is being vacated by term-limited Sen. Sally Ann Gonzales, and two Democrats are vying for it: state Rep. Alma Hernandez, a four-term incumbent who has reached her House term limit, and Rocque Perez, a former Ward 5 Tucson City Council member and CEO of the Southern Arizona Education Council.

Into this contested, high-stakes primary stepped Rowley, with an endorsement for Hernandez — and a website page dedicated to condemning Perez, whom he nicknames Rocque "OnlyFans" Perez because of the candidate’s past videos on the website. He also cites past social media posts in which Perez called for violence against conservative politicians and members of Trump’s family.

According to a Facebook page run by Rowley, Arizona Politics, state Rep. Cesar Aguilar called Stonewall Democrats a Zionist organization, to which the account argued Aguilar was antisemitic. Rowley has frequently accused people of antisemitism for criticizing Israel.

On the Stonewall Democrats of Arizona website, Rowley published a lengthy attack page on Perez, citing old social media posts and accusing him and his campaign chair of antisemitism. The page declares: "Stonewall Democrats of Arizona have endorsed Alma Hernandez as a strong ally of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community for re-election, conversely we condemn Mr. Perez and his campaign Chair for their anti-Semitism, vileness and lack of professionalism."

Democratic Party members found it ironic that Rowley would call out anyone for offensive language, personal attacks, or inflammatory social media behavior.

Central to Rowley's attack page is a series of links — including an NBC News story about Rachel Dolezal being fired from a teaching job over an OnlyFans account, and several archived articles with headlines referencing "alleged sex worker" and "gay OnlyFans" — that frame Perez's past OnlyFans account as disqualifying. The rhetoric echoes attacks long used against LGBTQ+ people that link sex work to unfitness around children.

One longtime member of Arizona’s Democratic Party, who did not want to be named for fear of retaliation from Rowley, says they and other party members have long felt threatened and harassed by him. “I feel I need to protect myself from him,” they said. 

They added that it’s time for him to lose his position and relative power in the party.

"Rowley has been an issue for more than a decade," they said.