OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Republican candidate for Arizona governor, Kari Lake, is not conceding to her Democrat opponent Katie Hobbs after the election has been called in her favor.
In a message to her supporters, Lake has pledged to continue every legal avenue to challenge the election.
In a video, Lake declared that she is still in the contest and that she has hired attorneys to make her case.
“I am still in this fight with you. For two years, I’ve been sounding the alarm about our broken election system here in Arizona – and this past week has confirmed everything we’ve been saying. Well, we called for Katie Hobbs to recuse herself over a year ago. They ridiculed us. It turns out we were right. The fox was guarding the hen house, and because of that, voters have been disenfranchised when we raise concerns,” she said.
“Rest assured, I have assembled the best and brightest legal team and we are exploring every avenue to correct the many wrongs that have been done this past week,” she said. “I’m doing everything in my power to right these wrongs. My resolve to fight for you is higher than ever.”
“This movement started in Arizona and it quickly expanded to all 50 states. It’s a movement of mama bears and pop bears and students and Arizonans who love this country, who want secure borders, who want schools that prepare their children for the real opportunities that are out there. It’s a movement of Arizonans who want safe streets once again and want the drug crisis to come to an end. It’s a movement of Arizonans who want prosperity and the pursuit of happiness. That movement is stronger than it ever has been. And I can promise you one thing.
“This fight to save our republic has just begun. I love you, Arizona. And I love you, America,” she said.
Arizona, we are still in the fight. pic.twitter.com/ytaGvqG5J0
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) November 17, 2022
The contest was so close that, by state law, it may go to a recount, Fox News reported:
“Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs has defeated Republican Kari Lake in Arizona’s race for governor, NBC News projected Monday. Hobbs’ victory is key for Democrats in a presidential battleground — though the closeness of the contest left the result up in the air for nearly a week,” NBC News reported.
“A record number of early ballots were dropped off on Election Day in Maricopa County, officials said, which had to be processed in a more time-intensive manner that includes signature verification. Maricopa County, the state’s most populous, said Sunday that it estimated that its count was 94 percent complete after receiving a historic 290,000 of those early ballots on Election Day,” the outlet added.
Soon after the race was called, Lake responded on Twitter by saying: “Arizonans know BS when they see it.”
Arizonans know BS when they see it.
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) November 15, 2022
The police have given an update on the suspicious package that was sent to the headquarters of the Arizona Republican candidate for governor, Kari Lake.
The Phoenix Police said that they did not find any dangerous substance in the package that was sent to Lake headquarters, Fox News reported.
“The state lab tested the items turned over to them regarding incident #2022-1665892 and has determined there was no substance inside,” the authorities said.
The Lake campaign initially said the items were confiscated by law enforcement and sent to professionals in Quantico, Virginia, for examination but the Republican later told reporters they would be sent to a closer laboratory.
Lake’s campaign was shut down following the incident, just two days before her election against Democrat Katie Hobbs. No injuries were reported, and the staff member who opened the envelope received medical supervision.
“I have been so busy campaigning. This happened. I was not in the office. One of our wonderful staffers, a couple of them, were actually exposed,” Lake said following a campaign event in Queen Creek, Fox News Digital reported. “And so far, they’re doing okay. We’re monitoring them, and we want to make sure that everything’s okay.”
She went on to say that initially, the substance was to be sent to an FBI lab in Quantico, Va., but was rerouted to a closer facility instead.
“So we’re going to find out what it was,” she said, adding that the incident over the weekend was not the first time that her campaign was targeted.
“But listen, we’re in dangerous times,” she continued. “This is not the first time we’ve been threatened.
“I’ve been threatened many times. Our tires have been slashed. We’ve had screws drilled into our tires so that our tires would blow out while we’re on the road,” Lake added. “We are living in dangerous times, and that’s why we need to elect somebody who’s strong and a fighter and not a coward. We’ll get to the bottom of this. I really don’t want to get too far ahead of it.”
