Previously, he hosted a conservative talk radio program on KFYI in Phoenix until January 2010, when he resigned due to his run for the U.S. Senate.

A graduate of North Carolina State University, Hayworth anchored sports reports for three television stations during the 1980s and early 1990s.

[3] Hayworth received a bachelor's degree in speech communications and political science from North Carolina State University in Raleigh in 1980, where he was student body president during his senior year.

[4] He was a sportscaster for WPTF-TV in Raleigh/Durham, NC, WFBC-TV (now WYFF-TV), the NBC station in Greenville, South Carolina, from 1981 to 1986, and WLWT-TV in Cincinnati, Ohio from 1986 to 1987.

In 1998, Hayworth signed and filed the form in person, with television cameras, campaign volunteers, and the Arizona Secretary of State watching.

He sometimes substitutes as host of the nationally syndicated Laura Ingraham political commentary show on the Talk Radio Network.

He supports stronger border security and opposes the temporary worker program proposed by President George W. Bush for illegal aliens.

In January 2006, Regnery published Whatever It Takes: Illegal Immigration, Border Security, and the War on Terror, a book by Hayworth and his chief of staff, Joseph J. Eule.

In the book, Hayworth said that Bush is too close to GOP contributors from the agribusiness, meat packing and construction industries, whom he calls "addicted" to a steady stream of workers from Mexico and Central America to keep wages down.

[2] Hayworth had considered running for the Governor of Arizona in the 2006 elections against incumbent Democrat Janet Napolitano, but in March 2005 he announced that he preferred to stay in Congress.

[12] In the 2006 election, Hayworth faced former Tempe mayor, state senator, and then-state Democratic Party chairman Harry Mitchell.

CD-5, despite having a 60% Republican active registered voter advantage over Democrats (139,057 vs 86,743 in October 2006),[14] nevertheless saw Hayworth narrowly defeated by Mitchell.

While most media outlets called the race for Mitchell on election night, Hayworth refused to concede due to a large number of absentee and early-voting ballots.

[2][16] On January 3, 2012, Hayworth began a stint hosting a morning show on KSFO in San Francisco, California.