PEORIA, Ariz. — Hiral Tipirneni asked how many people gathered at the Rio Vista Recreation Center here Monday night had a pre-existing health condition. Almost everyone raised their hand.

“All of these great provisions of the [2010 health care law] are being eroded away,” she told the town hall audience, referring to a White House proposal announced earlier that day to allow states to waive some of the law’s requirements. “That is why I am running. Because I refuse — I refuse to see this happen to our country.”

This the campaign that Tipirneni has been running ever since the national spotlight moved on from Arizona’s 8th District in the Phoenix suburbs after the Democrat lost an April special election to Republican Debbie Lesko by 5 points in a seat President Donald Trump won by 21 points in 2016.

Lesko, while acknowledging she isn’t taking anything for granted this time, put down the close April result to the nationwide attention on the race. But some Democrats are optimistic Tipirneni has kept up the momentum since then.

“It’s a really dark horse race,” said DJ Quinlan, the former executive director of the Arizona Democratic Party.