Posted on 11/09/2022 1:31:20 PM PST by Mr. Mojo
PHOENIX — Democrat Katie Hobbs lost ground overnight to Republican Kari Lake in the race for Arizona governor.
Hobbs led 50.3%-49.7% in numbers released around 7 a.m. Wednesday by the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office, down from her previous share of 51.3%.
Only 11,726 votes separate the candidates.
Lake, the former television news anchor with Fox 10, won the Republican nomination over Karrin Taylor Robson and centered her campaign around the values of former President Donald Trump.
Her television-ready demeanor, confrontations with journalists and combative message for Democrats made the first-time candidate a rising star on the right whose future in national politics is already being debated.
Hobbs, Arizona’s Secretary of State, easily won the Democratic nomination on the strength of her rebuttal of fraud claims pertaining to the 2020 election.
The two candidates never debated during the cycle, a decision Hobbs said was due to her belief Lake “was only interested in a spotlight and creating a spectacle.”
The results will be a window into the pulse of the electorate in Arizona, a longtime Republican stronghold that turned toward Democrats during the Trump era.
They’ll provide insight into whether Biden’s success here in 2020 was a onetime event or the onset of a long-term shift away from the GOP.
Tensions between Hobbs and Lake continued into the final weeks before the election.
Hobbs’ campaign office was broken into Oct. 24, a crime the Democrat attributed to Lake’s words and actions.
No link was found between the accused thief and Lake’s campaign.
Polling averages had the two candidates close in the months leading up to the election.
FiveThirtyEight had Lake up 2.4 percentage points, while RealClearPolitics had Lake with an advantage of 3.5 percentage points on Tuesday.
According to Charlie Kirk, another large chunk of ballots is expected to be dropped at 7pm, which he thinks will put her over the top.
Of course, NBC won’t project her as the winner any time soon - but we may know the outcome by later tonight. Apparently, AZ doesn’t report by precinct, so you need to understand AZ electioneering quirks to do the math - and NBC doesn’t.
Listening to Charlie Kirk on RAV is the best way to follow this - and they are very confident and upbeat.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Keri were to give a victory speech tonight or tomorrow - just to make their heads all ‘splodey.
Welcome to Arizona. This slow-walking the results is exactly what happened in the primary earlier this year. Don’t expect another update until late in the afternoon. Kari started out behind in the primary too, and came roaring back to win in a big way.
The vote tally is now 50.1% for Hobbs and 49.9% for Lake with only 4,570 separating the two!
Pima is still holding onto their last 5%. That’s where this will swing blue. They won’t finish those until the others for Lake have been tallied.
How many more left to count ?
Any updates on the AZ senate race?
As far as I know there have been no updates since sunup. It takes time to fix the vote.
Or better yet, when is the next drop so we can cheer the vote flip
Kelly with 51.2% vs Master at 46.6%
From what it looks like, only 50% or less has been counted from all the rural red counties. These counties are going to each go 75% or better for Lake. I think she has this.
Abe just took the lead..Kari is up BIG in Pima, which is a Dem stronghold, all three are going to win
Pima just came in strong for Kari, Abe, and Masters, isnt Pima a dem stronghold
The only way that Kari Lake will be listed as the loser will be if systemic fraud prevails.
I’m not sure but Charlie Kirk is saying it’s more than enough to make up the difference.
When did one “this close” ever go to the Republican?
Yes it is! That is huge!
She probably should but they’ll do all they can do to deny her.
Dr. Kelli Ward 🇺🇸
@kelliwardaz
·
11m
🚨 Pima Drop 22,109 ballots 🚨
Pima is a Dem stronghold, right? 🤔
Lake 66.1%
Hobbs 33%
Masters 63.3%
Kelly 35%
Finchem 65.1%
Fontes 34.9%
Hamadeh 66.6%
Mayes 33.4%
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