Kari Lake – live: Election denier calls Arizona loss ‘unforgivable’ as she still refuses to concede race

Kari Lake is showing no signs of conceding after she was projected to lose the race for Arizona governor to Democratic rival Katie Hobbs.

The Donald Trump-endorsed Republican traveled to his Mar-a-Lago residence on Thursday, days after the former president announced his entry into the 2024 presidential race.

Ms Lake, who has dutifully embraced his false narrative of a stolen 2020 election, has sought to represent the state that birthed the “Stop the Steal” movement and was central to conspiracy theory-fuelled audits after Joe Biden’s victory.

In a video posted to social media on Thursday morning, she called her election loss “unforgivable” and told her supporters she is “still in this fight”, repeating unfounded claims that a “broken election system” had “disenfranchised” “tens of thousands” of voters in the state.

Ms Hobbs told supporters at a victory rally this week that Arizona voters chose “solving our problems over conspiracy theories” and “sanity over chaos”.

Arizona governor’s race

• Katie Hobbs defeats far-right Republican Kari Lake in Arizona governor’s race

• After election loss, Kari Lake says she is ‘still in this fight'

• Kari Lake receives standing ovation at Mar-a-Lago event

• Election complaints flood Maricopa County hearing

• Katie Hobbs: 'Arizonans chose solving our problems over conspiracy theories’

‘Conservatism wins in Arizona. Crazy does not’: Analysts reflect on GOP losses after Republicans call for resignation of party chair

10:00 , Alex Woodward

Arizona’s Republican Party chair Kelli Ward faces calls to step down after high-profile midterm election losses, including Senate candidate Blake Masters and gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake.

Democratic candidates saw historic success; the state will be represented by a Democratic governor and secretary of state, with two Democratic Senators in Congress, defeating far-right candidates who rejected the 2020 presidential election outcome and promoted baseless claims about the electoral process.

“Conservatism wins in Arizona. Crazy does not,” according to Chris Baker, a Republican political consultant who works on congressional and legislative races in Arizona and elsewhere.

“The Republican Party in Arizona is at a crossroads right now,” he told the Arizona Mirror. “Is this the direction we want to continue in?”

ICYMI: Kari Lake refuses to concede, alleging a ‘broken election system’ that ‘disenfranchised’ voters

09:00 , Alex Woodward

Kari Lake told her supporters she is “still in this fight” and has refused to concede the race for Arizona governor after her projected loss to Katie Hobbs.

In a video posted on social media on Thursday morning, she claimed a “broken election system” has “disenfranchised” “tens of thousands” of voters in an election that also saw Republican incumbent victories and the GOP flipping two House seats. All were on the same ballot with her.

Voters did have to deal with ballot machine issues, but voters had several options to make sure their ballots were cast and counted. But Kari Lake’s allies and the chair of the Arizona Republican Party told voters not to use them.

Ms Lake essentially said she would not accept the results of an election she lost and suggested her opponents would have to “cheat even harder in order to win this”. Just as Trump spent months undermining the electoral process before his defeat and ongoing attempt to overturn the results, Ms Lake is now appropriating allegations of voter suppression to bolster conspiracy theories about her loss.

“We are exploring every avenue to correct the many wrongs that have been done this past week,” she said.

Election deniers overwhelmingly failed in 2022. The candidates who defeated them are bracing for 2024

08:00 , Alex Woodward

Secretaries of state – both Democrats and Republicans – were critical in 2020 elections to stand up against Donald Trump and his allies from attempts to reject or overturn the results. Those officials certified votes, protected election workers and volunteers from harassment and abuse, and, in at least one case, rebuffed a direct surbversive attempt – recorded on tape – from Mr Trump himself.

Georgia’s Republican secretary of state Brad Raffensperger gained a national profile in the aftermath of the 2020 election, when then-president Trump called him to “find” enough votes to overturn Joe Biden’s victory in the state. He refused.

“We’re going to stand for the rule of law,” he told reporters in the briefing on 15 November. “They’re gonna stand for the Constitution. And so that’s where we are right now. And we continue to press on to make sure we have honest, fair elections.”

Election deniers overwhelmingly failed in 2022. The threat isn’t over

ICYMI: Supreme Court rejects Arizona GOP chair’s attempt to block phone records from Jan 6 committee

07:00 , Alex Woodward

Arizona GOP chair Kelli Ward is likely to have her phone records in the hands of the House select committee investigating the attack on the US Capitol.

She was among so-called “alternate electors” in a scheme to falsely declare Donald Trump the winner of the 2020 presidential election. The plot relied on a bogus legal theory involving a slate of fraudulent certificates from key states that falsely asserted Mr Trump’s electoral college votes.

On Monday, the US Supreme Court gave the committee the greenlight to access those records.

Republican officials in Arizona are demanding that Ms Ward resign after the party lost races for governor, attorney general and US Senate.

Jan 6 committee can access Arizona GOP chair’s phone records, Supreme Court rules

ICYMI: Damning letter from Arizona GOP official demands resignation of state party chair

05:00 , Alex Woodward

Under Kelli Ward’s leadership of the Arizona GOP, 2022 midterm elections will be the first in nearly 50 years that Republicans have lost a majority of statewide races.

Karrin Taylor Robson, a former member of the Arizona Board of Regents, called for Ms Ward’s resignation.

“Kelli Ward’s leadership of the Republican Party has been an unmitigated disaster,” she wrote in a damning letter on Tuesday.

“For the good of the party she claims to love, and for the future of the state that we all cherish, Kelli Ward must do the right thing,” she added. “Kelli Ward must resign as the Arizona Republican Party Chairman.”

Kari Lake receives standing ovation at right-wing think tank event at Mar-a-Lago: report

03:00 , Alex Woodward

Kari Lake traveled to Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resident in Florida after her projected loss in the Arizona governor’s race.

She reportedly received a standing ovation at an event hosted by the America First Policy Institute, a right-wing group formed by Trump allies and former members of his administration, according to The Washington Post.

The group’s event on Thursday aimed to “ensure polices are prepared and finalized for new sessions of Congress and the state house.”

ICYMI: Election complaints flood Maricopa County hearing

01:00 , Alex Woodward

Kari Lake and her campaign and allies urged people to attend a Maricopa County Board of Supervisors hearing on Wednesday night, where a round of public comments accused the board of being a cancer, issued threats and warnings, and demanded resignations.

The verbal attacks against the board and chair Bill Gates largely focused on printing issues that required county voters to place their ballots in a secure Box 3 that was designed exactly for those scenarios.

But it has been the subject of widespread disinformation and allegations of malfeasance – including from the state Republican party’s own chair and other Lake allies – despite repeated attempts from elections officials to debunk them and ensure that their ballots counted.

Kari Lake assembles legal team and launches website after losing election to allege voter suppression

Thursday 17 November 2022 23:05 , Alex Woodward

Kari Lake has refused to concede in the race for Arizona governor and is intead assembling a legal team and launching a website to collect alleged evidence of voter suppression after her loss.

In a two-minute video posted on social media, the far-right candidate said she has “assembled the best and brightest legal team” to explore “every avenue to correct the many wrongs that have been done this past week.”

Over the last several days, her campaign has posted videos of people claiming that they experienced long lines and issues with ballot processing machines – problems that election officials have admitted were affecting roughly one-third of voting centres in Maricopa County, the largest county in the state.

In many of the videos, people admitted that they were ultimately able to cast their ballot.

But election officials have stressed that voters had several options to make sure their ballots were cast and counted, including voting at other polling places in the county – wait times were posted online – or submitting paper ballots in a secure box.

Kari Lake’s allies and the chair of the Arizona Republican Party, however, told voters not to use them. Republicans nationwide also have cast doubt on the legitimacy of early voting, mail-in voting and using ballot drop boxes, insisting that people only vote in person on Election Day.

Bill Gates, the Republican chair of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, blamed Ms Ward and other GOP officials for spreading baseless claims and exacerbating delays.

“This team, we have accepted our responsibility in this,” he said on Monday. “But I’m not willing to accept responsibility for issues that were caused by others. And it is clear to me that those lines were longer because leaders in one political party were spreading misinformation.”

Attorney general’s race separated by just 130 votes

Thursday 17 November 2022 22:00 , Alex Woodward

Following an update from Maricopa County, Democratic candidate for attorney general Kris Mayes is leading Republican Abe Hamadeh by just 130 votes.

Ms Mayes has netted 1,249,949 votes to Mr Hamadeh’s 1,249,819 votes, as of 4.30pm ET, according to the secretary of state’s office.

That race is likely headed towards an automatic recount, which is triggered when the votes get within one half of one per cent.

Election officials debunk ‘corrupt’ election claims

Thursday 17 November 2022 21:00 , Alex Woodward

Arizona and Maricopa County in particular are once again at the centre of right-wing conspiracy theories and allegations of election malfeasance as ballots continue to be processed and counted in the battleground state.

Far-right activists like discredited filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza also are reviving allegations of so-called “mules” dropping off multiple absentee ballots at drop boxes, which is legal in Arizona.

Before Election Day, a federal judge even ordered an activist to revoke false claims about ballot drop boxes and to post on her social media account what the actual law states after her group prompted stakeouts that harassed and filmed voters dropping off their ballots.

Katie Hobbs’ lead narrows as more ballots processed but Democratic candidate remains ahead by nearly 17,000 votes

Thursday 17 November 2022 20:01 , Alex Woodward

Democratic candidate for Arizona governor Katie Hobbs remains the projected victor in the race, ahead by nearly 17,000 votes as remaining ballots are processed and counted, with nearly 100 per cent of counties reporting their results

Ms Hobbs leads by 16,934 votes, with 1,282,837 votes to Ms Lake’s 1,265,903 votes, according to figures from the secretary of state’s office as of 3pm ET on Thursday.

Kari Lake receives standing ovation at right-wing think tank event at Mar-a-Lago: report

Thursday 17 November 2022 19:30 , Alex Woodward

Kari Lake traveled to Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resident in Florida after her projected loss in the Arizona governor’s race.

She reportedly received a standing ovation at an event hosted by the America First Policy Institute, a right-wing group formed by Trump allies and former members of his administration, according to The Washington Post.

The group’s event on Thursday aimed to “ensure polices are prepared and finalized for new sessions of Congress and the state house.”

Kari Lake’s refusal to concede is splitting GOP factions: report

Thursday 17 November 2022 19:00 , Alex Woodward

Her decision to pursue her legal options after her defeat in the Arizona governor’s race has fractured Republicans who want to move away from rampant so-called election denialism while its true believers continue to reject the outcomes of races they have lose.

“Kari Lake has lost the race in my opinion. There’s no way for her to have a pathway,” former Governor Jan Brewer told The New York Times this week. “If I was in that position, I probably would concede. Our democracy is so important to what our country and state stands for. We vote people in and we vote people out.”

Members of Turning Point USA, the far-right activist group that has backed Ms Lake’s campaign, have appeared skeptical about what comes next for the candidate.

During a broadcast this week, far-right state lawmaker Wendy Rogers told Turning Point’s Charlie Kirk “we wonder now if we were in echo chamber.”

“I don’t know. I’m just beginning to get some perspective.”

‘Conservatism wins in Arizona. Crazy does not’: Analysts reflect on GOP losses after Republicans call for resignation of party chair

Thursday 17 November 2022 18:30 , Alex Woodward

Arizona’s Republican Party chair Kelli Ward faces calls to step down after high-profile midterm election losses, including Senate candidate Blake Masters and gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake.

Democratic candidates saw historic success; the state will be represented by a Democratic governor and secretary of state, with two Democratic Senators in Congress, defeating far-right candidates who rejected the 2020 presidential election outcome and promoted baseless claims about the electoral process.

“Conservatism wins in Arizona. Crazy does not,” according to Chris Baker, a Republican political consultant who works on congressional and legislative races in Arizona and elsewhere.

“The Republican Party in Arizona is at a crossroads right now,” he told the Arizona Mirror. “Is this the direction we want to continue in?”

Kari Lake reportedly spotted at Mar-a-Lago

Thursday 17 November 2022 17:04 , Alex Woodward

Less two days after Donald Trump announced his entry into the 2024 presidential race, Kari Lake was reportedly seen at his Mar-a-Lago residence.

The former president endorsed Ms Lake, who has dutifully embraced his false narrative of a stolen 2020 election, in a stop that birthed the “Stop the Steal” movement and was central to spurious audits fuelled by conspiracy theories after Joe Biden won the state.

Ms Lake has endorsed his 2024 run.

Kari Lake refuses to concede, alleging a ‘broken election system’ that ‘disenfranchised’ voters

Thursday 17 November 2022 16:00 , Alex Woodward

Kari Lake told her supporters she is “still in this fight” and has refused to concede the race for Arizona governor after her projected loss to Katie Hobbs.

In a video posted on social media on Thursday morning, she claimed a “broken election system” has “disenfranchised” “tens of thousands” of voters in an election that also saw Republican incumbent victories and the GOP flipping two House seats. All were on the same ballot with her.

Voters did have to deal with ballot machine issues, but voters had several options to make sure their ballots were cast and counted. But Kari Lake’s allies and the chair of the Arizona Republican Party told voters not to use them.

Ms Lake essentially said she would not accept the results of an election she lost and suggested her opponents would have to “cheat even harder in order to win this”. Just as Trump spent months undermining the electoral process before his defeat and ongoing attempt to overturn the results, Ms Lake is now appropriating allegations of voter suppression to bolster conspiracy theories about her loss.

“We are exploring every avenue to correct the many wrongs that have been done this past week,” she said.

Election denier running for attorney general is trailing by only 711 votes

Thursday 17 November 2022 15:30 , Alex Woodward

Democratic candidate Kris Mayes is leading by only 711 votes in the race for Arizona attorney general, with Republican Abe Hamadeh hoping to eke out a victory after sweeping statewide GOP losses.

If elected, Mr Hamadeh – a Trump loyalist who has refused to accept the outcome of the 2020 election, and was allied with conspiracy theorists Kari Lake and Mark Finchem – would be among only a handful of statewide Republicans in Arizona who won their races this year.

His loss – along with Ms Lake’s and Mr Finchem’s - would be significant blow to Trump’s false stolen election narrative that fuelled races across the US.

Roughly 25,000 ballots remained uncounted statewide as of Wednesday evening, according to the Secretary of State’s Office estimates.

Election complaints flood Maricopa County hearing

Thursday 17 November 2022 14:51 , Alex Woodward

Kari Lake and her campaign and allies urged people to attend a Maricopa County Board of Supervisors hearing on Wednesday night, where a round of public comments accused the board of being a cancer, issued threats and warnings, and demanded resignations.

The verbal attacks against the board and chair Bill Gates largely focused on printing issues that required county voters to place their ballots in a secure Box 3 that was designed exactly for those scenarios.

But it has been the subject of widespread disinformation and allegations of malfeasance – including from the state Republican party’s own chair and other Lake allies – despite repeated attempts from elections officials to debunk them and ensure that their ballots counted.

ICYMI: Trump makes rare admission on the GOP’s lacklustre midterm performance

Thursday 17 November 2022 13:00 , Alex Woodward

The twice-impeached former president who fuelled an attack on the US Capitol to overturn the 2020 election appeared to admit on Tuesday night that the party enraptured by his false claims of election fraud did not do so well in midterm elections.

Nearly every candidate he endorsed at the state level in battleground states he lost and then challenged were defeated.

His endorsed Senate candidates in battleground states Arizona, Nevada and Pennsylvania also failed.

“Much criticism is being placed on the fact that the Republican Party should have done better and frankly, much of this blame is correct,” he said. “But the citizens of our country have not yet realised the full extent and gravity of the pain our nation is going through and the total effect of the suffering is just starting to take hold.”

Trump makes rare admission on the GOP’s lacklustre midterm performance

Kari Lake vows ‘I won’t back down’ in moody video

Thursday 17 November 2022 12:25 , Megan Sheets

Kari Lake has dropped another hint that she will challenge her election loss to Katie Hobbs.

During her campaign, the Trump-backed Republican repeatedly refused to say if she would accept results that did not declare her Arizona governor.

In the three days since the race was called for Democrat Ms Hobbs, Ms Lake has shown no signs of intent to concede as she branded the results “BS” and “botched”.

On Wednesday evening, she took to Twitter to share a new video suggesting an official legal battle over the outcome.

The video features the Tom Petty classic “I Won’t Back Down” over slow-motion clips of her on the campaign trail.

ICYMI: Supreme Court rejects Arizona GOP chair’s attempt to block phone records from Jan 6 committee

Thursday 17 November 2022 12:00 , Alex Woodward

Arizona GOP chair Kelli Ward, whose party tanked in statewide elections, is likely to have her phone records in the hands of the House select committee investigating the attack on the US Capitol.

She was among so-called “alternate electors” in a scheme to falsely declare Donald Trump the winner of the 2020 presidential election. The plot relied on a bogus legal theory involving a slate of fraudulent certificates from key states that falsely asserted Mr Trump’s electoral college votes.

On Monday, the US Supreme Court gave the committee the greenlight to access those records.

Republican officials in Arizona are demanding that Ms Ward resign after the party lost races for governor, attorney general and US Senate.

Jan 6 committee can access Arizona GOP chair’s phone records, Supreme Court rules

Arizona GOP campaigned with ‘nothing but vitriol and anger and discontent,’ former chair says

Thursday 17 November 2022 11:00 , Alex Woodward

Arizona’s Republican Party is under pressure to advance far different candidates after losing races for governor, secretary of state and US Senate with candidates relying on extremist rhetoric, antidemocratic agendas and Donald Trump.

A former chair of the state party told Arizona NBC affiliate 12News that Republicans “forgot that one of the jobs is to inspire people, teach them why we believe that the Republican values and principles.

“What happens is that people get exhausted. When you have negative messaging, people just get tired of it,” Robert Graham said. “It’s like a little brother picking at you every single day. Pretty soon, you turn, and you just say, ‘Stop. You can’t do this.’ And that’s what’s happened.”

He suggested that Kelli Ward, the current state party chair who is also under investigation by the House select committee probing the Capitol attack, campaigned with “nothing but vitriol and anger and discontent with the way things have been” and did “nothing to inspire people or bring people together.”

“That’s where you lose,” Mr Graham said. “There was no continuity via messaging. And I think Kelli Ward should be held accountable for that.”

Voices: ‘Trump’s 2024 announcement proves it – he’s the weakest and most desperate he’s ever been’

Thursday 17 November 2022 10:00 , Alex Woodward

Ahmed Baba writes:

GOP megadonor splits with Trump: Time for ‘new generation of leaders’

Thursday 17 November 2022 09:00 , Alex Woodward

An influential conservative donor announced on Tuesday that he was not supporting Donald Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, a stance that shows just how deep the fractures within the GOP may run after last week’s midterms.

“America does better when its leaders are rooted in today and tomorrow, not today and yesterday,” said Stephen Schwarzman, CEO of Blackstone, in a statement to Axios.

“It is time for the Republican Party to turn to a new generation of leaders and I intend to support one of them in the presidential primaries,” he added.

GOP megadonor splits with Trump: Time for ‘new generation of leaders’

ICYMI: A small group of Kari Lake supporters stage statehouse protest

Thursday 17 November 2022 08:00 , Alex Woodward

A small but vocal group of Kari Lake’s supporters who refused to accept the outcome of the governor’s race rallied outside the state capitol in Arizona on Tuesday.

Roughly 15 people gathered at the statehouse waving flags emblazoned with pro-Trump messages and “SOS”.

Less than 20 Kari Lake supporters turn out for protest against Arizona election loss

Election deniers overwhelmingly failed in 2022. The candidates who defeated them are bracing for 2024

Thursday 17 November 2022 07:00 , Alex Woodward

Voters rejected Republicans in critical state-level races running on bogus election narratives and endless grievances.

After beating them, newly elected officials warn that the GOP movement of Trump loyalists and conspiracy theorists isn’t over yet.

Election deniers overwhelmingly failed in 2022. The threat isn’t over

ICYMI: Kari Lake campaign accuses Arizona election officials of running a ‘third world election’

Thursday 17 November 2022 05:00 , Alex Woodward

Kari Lake has not conceded in the race for Arizona governor, and her campaign has shared videos of people accusing election officials and poll workers of malfeasance.

Her campaign’s “war room” Twitter account has accused her opponent and current secretary of state Katie Hobbs as well as election officials in Maricopa County of running a “third world election” that is “creating a whole generation of new ‘election deniers’.”

Videos shared by the campaign show voters detailing problems with ballot processing machines, which election officials had admitted were an issue as technical difficulties led to delays and frustrations.

There was a solution: Voters could place their ballots in a secure box at each polling location used for that exact issue. “Box 3” boxes have been the subject of conspiracy theories and rampant speculation, suggesting that the ballots were tossed out entirely.

But some of Ms Lake’s chief allies told voters not to trust them, including Kelli Ward, chair of the state GOP:

ICYMI: Damning letter from Arizona GOP official demands resignation of state party chair

Thursday 17 November 2022 03:00 , Alex Woodward

Under Kelli Ward’s leadership of the Arizona GOP, 2022 midterm elections will be the first in nearly 50 years that Republicans have lost a majority of statewide races.

Karrin Taylor Robson, a former member of the Arizona Board of Regents, called for Ms Ward’s resignation.

“Kelli Ward’s leadership of the Republican Party has been an unmitigated disaster,” she wrote in a damning letter on Tuesday.

“For the good of the party she claims to love, and for the future of the state that we all cherish, Kelli Ward must do the right thing,” she added. “Kelli Ward must resign as the Arizona Republican Party Chairman.”

Arizona voters call on Maricopa County officials to resign and cancel the election in public hearing

Thursday 17 November 2022 00:16 , Alex Woodward

In a hearing on Wednesday, one week and a day after Election Day, Maricopa County’s Board of Supervisors were hit with a flood of complaints during a public hearing alleging malfeasance in the wake of GOP losses in statewide races.

ABC 15 reporter Nicole Grigg compiled a reel of their complaints:

Steve Bannon claims Kari Lake will fight election outcome ‘to the bitter end’

Thursday 17 November 2022 00:00 , Alex Woodward

Far-right activist and former Trump aide Steve Bannon was reportedly “clear-eyed about the unfavorable numbers” before Kari Lake’s election loss.

But he told his War Room listeners this week that Ms Lake’s campaign – backed by Trump allies and far-right activist groups – is working “behind the scenes” to challenge Katie Hobbs’s vistory.

“Don’t think that Kari Lake that is not going to fight this one down to the bitter end,” he said.

He repeatedly suggested that the state decertify the results, echoing his baseless narrative that the 2020 election was stolen from Trump – claims that have been popular fundraising mechanisms to propel ultimately unsuccessful reactionary campaigns over the last two years.

But off the airwaves, Ms Lake’s campaign was being advised to a more measured approach to the outcome and not “storm the castle,” according to The Washington Post.

ICYMI: Katie Hobbs pledges to protect abortion rights in state with century-old ban

Wednesday 16 November 2022 23:00 , Alex Woodward

In a speech to supporters on Tuesday, governor-elect Katie Hobbs said she will move to repeal a more than century-old ban on abortion in the state that was allowed to take effect after the US Supreme Court struck down Roe v Wade.

The anti-abortion law was updated in 1901. But Arizona didn’t become a state until 1912. The sweeping abortion prohibition from the state’s territorial history decades earlier has remain on the books, but unenforced, for more than a century, despite the landmark 1973 Supreme Court ruling found the law and others like it unconstitutional.

In September, two months after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v Wade, a judge allowed the ban to take effect.

Damning letter from Arizona GOP official demands resignation of state party chair

Wednesday 16 November 2022 22:00 , Alex Woodward

Under Kelli Ward’s leadership of the Arizona GOP, 2022 midterm elections will be the first in nearly 50 years that Republicans have lost a majority of statewide races.

Karrin Taylor Robson, a former member of the Arizona Board of Regents, called for Ms Ward’s resignation.“Kelli Ward’s leadership of the Republican Party has been an unmitigated disaster,” she wrote in a damning letter on Tuesday.

“For the good of the party she claims to love, and for the future of the state that we all cherish, Kelli Ward must do the right thing,” she added. “Kelli Ward must resign as the Arizona Republican Party Chairman.”