Most Arizonans expected the ultimate crier and denier U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake to snag the Arizona Republican primary against the fairly unknown and underfunded GOP candidate, Sheriff Mark Lamb—still, plenty of Arizonans didn’t change their minds over her win—why?— because the Kari Lake perception lives on.
“I’m so sick of Kari Lake,” is often accompanied by eye rolls, chuckles, even negative body language when questions are posed regarding Lake’s now U.S. Senate candidacy.
Northeast Valley News asked Arizonans during a particularly hot and humid monsoon day before last Tuesday’s primary election if they agreed with the fan club motto #sickofKariLake.
The unscientific opinion poll, revealed more than half of those questioned said “yes” to whether they are sick of Kari Lake, and many added that they would be glad when she either moves on from running for office—or moves away.
This is likely due, in large part, to “Lawsuit Lake” when as recent as June, Ms. Lake lost yet another in her long line of lawsuits claiming election fraud over her loss to Governor Katie Hobbs.
The latest court loss was an appeal in Arizona Superior Court— a defeat in Lake’s continuing effort to overturn Governor Katie Hobbs’s victory even though she was defeated by Hobbs by more than 17,000 votes.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson ruled in June that Lake had not provided evidence of misconduct in the signature-verified results from early ballots.
In an earlier ruling in December, a claim was rejected that defective printers and other issues with the 2022 election were “intentional misconduct,” and the ruling was upheld February by an appeals court.
In March, the state’s high court declined to hear the appeal of Lake’s Feb. filing but the Arizona Supreme Court sent her claim challenging the signature verification back to the trial court.
Ultimately after a three-day trial, Judge Thompson, who was appointed by former Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, found “no clear and convincing evidence or preponderance of evidence that such misconduct was committed by ‘an officer making or participating in a canvas,” according to the ruling and reported by the Associated Press.
He also found no evidence that alleged misconduct affected the election’s outcome.
Lake has filed legal claims that range from questioning Arizona’s election procedures, the actual vote tallies as well as the results of several legitimate audits.
During her campaign Lake referred to herself as a journalist, (she was a local news anchor) but often criticized the media when they asked for evidence of her election fraud claims.
But Lake, forever the Trump loyalist, has consistently adopted the unevidenced election denier stance over and over again and many Arizonans are annoyed.
“Oh I didn’t know there was a sick of Kari Lake fan club—but sign me up,” said Dom Sartoree while dropping off his ballot at a polling center near 7th street and Camelback.
A similar opinion poll taken by Northeast Valley News just after Lake’s court loss in June showed the majority of Valley voters responded unfavorably about Lake’s continual denial over her election loss and even expressed anger at the growing cost to taxpayers for the lawsuits.
One young voter, Kelli Howard, who registered to vote for the first time after the Roe v Wade decision, told Northeast Valley News, “I think a lot of people expected Kari Lake to deny losing because she talked about winning so much during her campaign and that if she lost she would never accept it—and she hasn’t.”
“I’m so sick and tired of Kari Lake’s whining,” said longtime registered Republican Nathan Richman of Phoenix.
Richman, told Northeast Valley News he voted for Lake in the gubernatorial race.
“I actually voted for her, but I will never vote for Lake again.”
