Kari Lake looks to harness her movement after Arizona loss
PHOENIX >> Brett Foto and his fiancee were vacationing in Phoenix last fall when they heard about a rally nearby for Kari Lake, then running for governor of Arizona.
No matter that they don't live or vote in Arizona. Lake was going places, an emerging star on the populist right, and they had to see her.
“We're seeing something very interesting tonight,” said Foto, a 52-year-old sales representative who lives outside Denver. “We're going to look back and say, `We saw her when we went to this little hangar in Phoenix.'”
Lake went on to lose that race to Democrat Katie Hobbs, a setback that would typically thwart political ambitions. But among conservatives, defeat has done little to erode Lake's standing. If anything, her refusal to acknowledge her loss only enhances her stature well beyond Arizona.
In the months since the election, Lake has popped up at former President Donald Trump's Florida estate and a palatial California hotel, where she unsuccessfully lobbied members of the Republican National Committee to defeat Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel. A more recent swing through Iowa sparked speculation about whether she may run for president or angle for a role as Trump's running mate if he clinches the GOP nomination again.
Wherever she is, she's doubling down on the formula that enthralled the Republican base but was rejected by a broader electorate: unflinching fealty to Trump, a relentless focus on unsubstantiated claims of election fraud, and tough talk about securing the U.S.Mexico border with force.
Lake will have another chance to showcase her bond with the GOP base next month with a prominent speaking role at the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, in Washington.
“She speaks MAGA,” Chuck Coughlin, a longtime political consultant in Arizona who was one of former Gov. Jan Brewer's top advisers, said, referring to Trump's “Make America Great Again” slogan. “She's better than Trump in many respects. She's a cultural warrior. She expresses their angst and anxiety over the way the country's going.”
Meanwhile, Lake is continuing to fight her loss in the Arizona appellate courts, which rejected her election challenge Thursday. She vowed to take her lawsuit to the state Supreme Court. She held a campaign-style rally this month to draw attention to her case.
“Kari Lake is the total package. She's articulate. She's confident. She's beautiful, but not in a threatening way,” said Linda Greulich, a 70-year-old retiree in Phoenix. “And I think if she wants to stay in politics, I see her going all the way to the top.”
The flurry of activity comes as Lake considers running for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Kyrsten Sinema, an independent and former Democrat. She met recently with National Republican Senatorial Committee officials in Washington.
Republicans outnumber Democrats in Arizona, yet they've struggled to win during the Trump era. The GOP lost three straight Senate races in Arizona as ticket-splitting voters who mostly support Republicans refused to vote for candidates closely aligned with Trump.