Trump ally Lake loses Arizona governor race
KARI Lake, a Donald Trump loyalist and prominent election denier, has lost her bid to be governor of Arizona, U.S. networks projected Monday.
The loss rounded out a difficult week for the former president as he readies for a new run for the White House.
Lake, a former TV anchor, had been seen as one of Trump’s most reliable picks heading into the midterm elections, but her defeat caps a run of results that have raised doubts about the former president’s place in the Republican Party.
The projections by major U.S. TV networks come after a week of intense scrutiny of the vote count in Arizona, where Lake and her supporters have repeatedly cast doubt on the competence and integrity of officials.
“Democracy is worth the wait,” tweeted Lake’s opponent, Democrat Katie Hobbs.
“Thank you, Arizona. I am so honored and so proud to be your next Governor.”
But Lake, who has built her brand on skepticism of the mainstream media and the political establishment appeared to reject the projections.
“Arizonans know BS when they see it,” she tweeted, using a euphemism for nonsense.
Lake had declared herself “100% confident” that she would prevail, but – in line with Trump’s playbook – had expended a lot of energy sowing doubt about the election system.
Supporters seized upon minor problems with vote tabulation machines in Maricopa County, the home of America’s fifth biggest city, Phoenix, which left some people standing in short lines last Tuesday.
Officials have forcefully insisted that no legitimate vote would be excluded and mounted a well-organized social media campaign to push back at falsehoods circulating online as the count plodded methodically on.