Topline
Republican Kari Lake will launch a run for an Arizona Senate seat next month, according to multiple reports, confirming months of speculation that Lake—who lost a bid for the governor’s office last year—would enter a potentially crowded and competitive race that will help determine which party controls the upper chamber after the 2024 election.
Kari Lake speaks on the third day of the CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) Washington, … [+]
Key Facts
Lake, a loyalist of former President Donald Trump who refused to concede her gubernatorial loss last year, is planning to debut her campaign next month, according to sources cited by CNN and Politico.
Lake has been teasing a run for the seat currently held by Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who switched her party affiliation from Democrat to Independent after last year’s midterm election.
Republican Blake Masters, who lost his Senate bid in a closely contested race to Sen. Mark Kelly (D) in November, is also widely expected to enter the race, while Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb is also running for the GOP nomination.
Progressive Rep. Ruben Gallego announced his plans to run for the Democratic nomination shortly after Sinema defected from the party; she has yet to announce whether she will seek reelection.
Key Background
Masters’ loss in Arizona was one of several GOP upsets that helped Democrats keep control of the upper chamber and led Republicans to blame Trump for endorsing a roster of losing candidates. Democrats gained one seat in the midterm election to hold a 51-49 majority. If Sinema decides to run again, she could complicate the race by drawing votes from either party.
Surprising Fact
Trump told Masters recently he doesn’t believe he can beat Lake in a primary, the New York Times reported last month, a sentiment consistent with those of some GOP strategists who have noted that Lake is more popular with GOP voters. Trump endorsed Masters for Senate and Lake for governor in her failed campaign against former Secretary of State Katie Hobbs (D) last year.
Tangent
Lake, a former TV news anchor who helped Trump promote his false election fraud claims, feverishly contested her own 17,000-vote loss to Hobbs in a string of failed lawsuits, the last of which was settled in May. She now faces a defamation suit filed by Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer accusing her of falsely claiming that he intentionally miscounted and misprinted ballots to prevent her from being elected.
Further Reading
Kari Lake Sued For Defamation By Arizona GOP Election Official She Accused Of Election Sabotage (Forbes)
Kari Lake Can Argue Her Claims Of Election Malfeasance In Court, Judge Says (Forbes)
Arizona Judge Tosses Kari Lake’s Election Malfeasance Claim (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2023/09/20/kari-lake-will-run-for-senate-in-arizona-after-refusing-to-concede-governors-race-reports-say/