The National Republican Senatorial Committee endorsed Arizona GOP U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake on Tuesday.
“Kari Lake is one of the most talented candidates in the country. Kari is building out an effective campaign operation that has what it takes to flip Arizona’s Senate seat in November,” NRSC chair Sen. Steve Daines of Montana said in a statement.
“I’m proud to endorse Kari Lake for United States Senate.”
Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming — the No. 3 Republican in the Senate, who has also endorsed Lake — wrote on X, “Kari is doing everything she needs to do to put together a winning campaign!”
Kari is doing everything she needs to do to put together a winning campaign! #AZSEN https://t.co/SX7dal7p6W
— John Barrasso (@barrassoforwyo) February 13, 2024
The NRSC backing comes a day after Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida announced their endorsements of Lake, according to The Hill.
Other Republican lawmakers who are backing Lake’s campaign include Sens. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, Roger Marshall of Kansas, as well as GOP Reps. Elise Stefanik of New York and Jim Banks of Indiana, the Daily Caller reported.
Lake, a former Phoenix television news anchor, narrowly lost her race against Democrat Katie Hobbs in 2022 governor’s race, which was marred by widespread Election Day voter machine malfunctioning in Maricopa County, the state’s most populous.
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Lake announced her bid for the U.S. Senate last fall, and former President Donald Trump immediately endorsed her.
She responded to the NRSC’s endorsement on X writing, “The GOP is UNITED in our fight to take back this Senate seat AND take back America in 2024!
“The Senate Majority Runs through Arizona. I am honored to have the [NRSC] endorsement & I can’t wait to get to work!” Lake added.
The GOP is UNITED in our fight to take back this Senate seat AND take back America in 2024!
The Senate Majority Runs through Arizona.
I am honored to have the @NRSC endorsement & I can’t wait to get to work! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/H4d0SeL7np
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) February 13, 2024
The Republican is running to win the seat currently held by Democrat-turned-independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who has not stated whether she will seek re-election.
Sinema has until April to qualify for the ballot, which will require her campaign to gather about 42,000 signatures of Arizona voters, CBS News reported.
Appearing on “Face the Nation” earlier this month to discuss a border bill that she had helped negotiate, Sinema deflected when asked if she will be running.
“I think folks across Arizona and the country know that when I decide I’m going to work on something that’s important for our state and for our nation, I stay focused on it,” the senator said.
Sinema’s border proposal failed to garner the support needed in the Senate for passage.
Though polling has been limited, Lake has a commanding lead over Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb in the GOP primary race. The RealClear Polling average, based on surveys conducted last year, showed her nearly 30 percentage points ahead.
Recent surveys regarding the general election find Lake with a slight edge over the leading Democrat in the race, Rep. Ruben Gallego.
If Sinema enters the contest, a survey conducted by Public Policy Polling in January shows Gallego with a one percentage point lead over Lake, while Sinema runs a distant third. The poll was commissioned by the Replace Sinema PAC.
The Daily Caller reported that other Republican candidates the NRSC has endorsed to date include former Navy SEAL Tim Sheehy in Montana, Army veteran Sam Brown in Nevada, former GOP Rep. Mike Rogers in Michigan and former hedge fund CEO David McCormick in Pennsylvania.
The Democrats will be defending 23 seats to the Republicans’ 11 in November’s election.
The Cook Political Report rates the races for Democratic-held seats in Arizona, Montana and Ohio as toss-ups, while the contests in the swing states of Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are all rated as “lean Democrat.”
No seats currently held by Republicans are seen as likely to flip.
The GOP needs to pick up two seats to gain back the Senate majority.
