Arizona Senate Race Changes Dramatically with Libertarian Candidate Dropping Out & Endorsing Blake Masters

The New York Times reported early Tuesday morning that the Libertarian Party candidate Marc Victory is dropping out in order to endorse Trump-endorsed outsider candidate Blake Masters.

“The Libertarian candidate running for Senate in Arizona — who had threatened to play spoiler in the closely watched race — is dropping out and endorsing Blake Masters, the Republican nominee,” the Times reported.

“The decision, announced on Tuesday, gives Mr. Masters a lift heading into the final week as he seeks to unseat Senator Mark Kelly, the Democratic incumbent, who has generally held a narrow lead in the polls,” the report continued.

“This is another major boost of momentum as we consolidate our support,” Masters said in a statement to The New York Times.

“Marc Victor, the Libertarian candidate, and Mr. Masters spoke on Monday for a 20-minute recorded conversation that Mr. Victor is expected to publish, according to a person familiar with the conversation,” the report added. “Mr. Victor had made such a conversation a precondition to quitting, technically offering such an opportunity both to Mr. Masters and to Mr. Kelly.”

“I found Blake to be generally supportive of the Live and Let Live Global Peace Movement,” Mr. Victor said in a statement. “After that discussion, I believe it is in the best interests of freedom and peace to withdraw my candidacy and enthusiastically support Blake Masters for United States Senate.”

As the Times points out, Victor’s “underfunded campaign had a chance to make more of an impact than some other third-party candidates this year, in part because he was onstage for the race’s lone debate.”

Blake Masters was also running an “underfunded” campaign, due largely to Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

McConnell’s Super Pac had earlier pulled out of the race and slashed $8 million in Senate ads earlier on in the race. The SLF has cut an estimated $9.6 million from Arizona senate race buys, according to Axios.

As the report adds, Kelly has a huge fundraising advantage, taking in $52 million through June — compared to only about $5 million by the Masters campaign. The Q3 donations were not yet released.

As recently as Tuesday, CNN was attempting to quell concerns over the state of Arizona, which it has featured as a key race that Democrats might be able to hold in the face of a potential “red wave” election.

“Arizona is the easiest race to understand,” CNN claimed. “Democrats have won the last two Senate races in the state, after not having won one since 1988. They’re powered by increasingly strong performances in the Phoenix suburbs among White college-educated voters and a reliable Hispanic base. (They’re also helped by one of the largest Native American populations in the country.)”

“Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly hasn’t trailed in any poll released publicly,” the report added. “His advantage has slimmed in some recent surveys, though many of those are from outfits that don’t meet CNN’s standards for publications.”

“On average, Kelly has been up by about 3 points over Republican Blake Masters,” the report continued. “A New York Times/Siena College poll published Monday gave Kelly a 6-point lead over Masters.”

However, Arizona recently moved into the ‘toss up’ category, according to Politico.

“Voters’ dissatisfaction with President Joe Biden’s job performance and a strong campaign from gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake have helped Masters close most of the gap with Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly,” the report said. “What we once described as a ‘Lean Democratic’ race in POLITICO’s Election Forecast is now a ‘Toss Up,’ meaning neither Kelly nor Masters has a significant advantage in the contest.”

That may fundamentally change now. Masters picks up momentum in both the polls and with the withdrawal of the potential spoiler Libertarian candidate. And not only did the Libertarian candidate withdraw, he endorsed Masters — a double whammy.

The Democratic Party can start to panic now.