Katie Hobbs Declared Winner In Arizona Governor Race By NBC & CNN; GOP’s Kari Lake Latest 2020 Election Denier To Lose Midterm Bid
15.11.2022 - 05:49
/ deadline.com
It was a true Grand Canyon State nail biter but Katie Hobbs prevailed over former TV anchor and Donald Trump acolyte Kari Lake in the race to be Arizona’s next governor, NBC and CNN projected on Monday.
The tight race between the candidates has been too close to call since Tuesday’s midterms, but the latest results from the state showed that Republican Lake would be unable to overcome current Arizona Secretary of State Hobbs’ lead. As over 71,000 votes and other data came in from Maricopa County tonight, the Comcast-owned network made its call:
BREAKING: Democrat Katie Hobbs wins Arizona governor's race, NBC News projects. https://t.co/noatnOv4zE pic.twitter.com/x8DFFwJqy3
CNN called Hobbs the winner at 6:15 PM PT.
Lake’s defeat is a stunning result for a candidate who seemed poised to become the next star on the right. Just hours before polls closed on November 8, the almost always poised Lake told reporters at a press conference that she would be “your worst freaking nightmare for eight years, and we will reform the media as well. We are going to make you guys into journalists again.” Lake was endorsed by Donald Trump and vigorously embraced his election denialism.
On election night and ever since, Hobbs held a slight lead over Lake, surprising many pundits who had questioned the low-key Democrat’s strategy of declining to participate in a debate with her rival. Lake, meanwhile, has bashed Arizona election officials as slow and incompetent as the process took time. She also raised doubts about the results, but some have refuted election conspiracy claims.
Bill Gates, the Republican chair of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, pushed back against Lake’s claims and told reporters that her criticisms were