Former sheriff Arpaio says he’ll run for Senate in Arizona

Joe Arpaio, the controversial former sheriff of Maricopa County, said Tuesday he is running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., who is not running for re-election.

If elected, Arpaio, 85, would be among the oldest senators in history.

In a Twitter post Tuesday morning, Arpaio said he is running “to support the agenda and policies of President Donald Trump.” The announcement came less than five months after Trump pardoned Arpaio for criminal contempt. Arpaio was convicted for defying a judge’s order forbidding the sheriff from detaining people suspected of illegal immigration in Arizona.