Lake’s stature grows in GOP despite Arizona loss

PHOENIX — Brett Foto and his fiancée 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 lost 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.

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 swing through Iowa sparked speculation about whether she will run for president or angle for a role as Trump’s running mate if he clinches the GOP nomination again.

She is doubling down on the formula that enthralled the Republican base but was rejected by a broader electorate: unflinching fealty to Trump, a focus on unsubstantiated claims of election fraud and tough talk about securing the U.s.-mexico border.

Lake will have another chance to showcase her bond with the GOP base next month with a speaking role at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.

She is fighting her loss in the Arizona appellate courts and has vowed to take her election challenge lawsuit to the state Supreme Court. Lake is also weighing a run for the U.S. Senate seat held by Kyrsten Sinema.