Diehard Trump supporter Kari Lake eyes Arizona Senate bid after failed campaign for governor
Former president Donald Trump’s campaign said it would welcome a run from her
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Failed Republican gubernatorial candidate and election denier Kari Lake is reportedly considering jumping into Arizona’s Senate race, Axios reported.
The former news anchor and darling of the MAGA Republican right rose to prominence thanks to her promoting lies about the 2020 presidential election and calling for the decertification of election results.
Last year she lost to Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs but has refused to concede and has taken her complaints to courts, which have summarily rejected her attempts to overturn the election.
In May, Maricopa Superior Court Judge Peter A Thompson said Ms Lake failed to prove that Maricopa, where Phoenix is located, did not verify signatures on mail-in ballots.
Since then, she’s become a fixture in right-wing media and at conservative gatherings such as the Conservative Political Action Conference, where she gave the Reagan Dinner speech.
Earlier this week, she campaigned for Bernie Moreno, who is running for Ohio’s Senate seat, and praised fellow MAGA Republican Sen JD Vance, who won his race.
“I'm really, really excited about [Mr Vance], I'm super excited that Bernie Moreno's going to be in the Senate. And if they're in the Senate, I just might have to join them,” she said.
Former president Donald Trump’s campaign praised Ms Lake and the idea of her running for Arizona’s Senate seat.
“When President Trump gets back in the White House he's going to need fighters like Kari Lake in Washington, DC to help enact his Agenda 47,” senior Trump adviser Caroline Wren told Axios.
Arizona’s incumbent Sen Kyrsten Sinema has not indicated whether she will seek another term in the Senate. In 2018, she became the first Democrat to win a Senate race in Arizona in 30 years. But Ms Sinema left the Democratic Party to become an independent in December.
Rep Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) announced he would run for Arizona’s Senate seat as a Democrat and outraised Ms Sinema in the last fundraising quarter. But despite her consistent opposition to many parts of his agenda, Ms Sinema joined President Joe Biden when he designated the greater Grand Canyon as a national monument on Tuesday.
But a poll from Noble Predictive Insights showed that Ms Sinema would trail both Mr Gallego and Ms Lake in a hypothetical three-way matchup.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments