Political Geography
Arizona is divided into 15 counties, and has 90 incorporated cities and towns. Approximately 65 percent of Arizona residents live in Maricopa County, which had a population of 3,880,181 as of the 2000 Census. Maricopa County ranks fourth among the nation's counties in terms of population, and is more populated than 24 of the U.S. states. The county seat of Maricopa County is Phoenix, which is Arizona's largest city and capital. The next most populous county is Pima County, which had a 2000 population of 843,746. The county seat of Pima County is Tucson, where nearly all of the population is concentrated. Combined, nearly 80% of Arizona residents live in either Maricopa County or Pima County, even though the two counties make up 16% of Arizona's total area. Because of the high population of Maricopa County and Pima County, both counties are dominant in state politics.
About 15% of Arizona is privately owned, the remaining land consisting primarily of public forest and park land, Native American reservations, military institutions, and swaths of wilderness held by the Bureau of Land Management. Arizona is home to 21 federally recognized tribes, which are each semi-autonomous. The large majority are part of the Navajo Nation, which is the largest Native American reservation in terms of population and size. The Navajo Reservation covers all of northeastern Arizona along with portions of New Mexico and Utah, and had a population of 180,462 as of the 2000 census.
Read more about this topic: Geography Of Arizona
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