Republican firebrand Kari Lake told her supporters to “strap on a Glock” to prepare for an intense six-month run-up to the November elections. Speaking to a cheering crowd in Arizona, the controversial Senate candidate said she would wear “God’s armor” and then “maybe strap on the Glock.” Lake even made suggestions as to where on their bodies her supporters could carry their guns but noted that she would keep hers on her hip.
The 54-year-old avid Trump supporter is fighting for the Senate seat currently held by former Democrat Krysten Sinema, who left the Democratic party last year and has confirmed she will not stand for re-election in November.
Senator Simena’s criticisms of the Washington party system, which prompted her to sit out her Senate term as an independent, also informed her decision to stand down. “I choose civility, understanding, listening, working together,” she said while confirming her exit from electoral politics.
The Senate race will most likely see Lake go into battle against Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego, and the two have already come to blows. Gallego announced in April that he intends to make abortion a critical factor in his election campaign and accused Ms. Lake of lying about her stance on the issue.
When Arizona’s Supreme Court recently ruled that an 1864 anti-abortion law was still enforceable, Lake publicly stated that the law should be repealed. “A full ban on abortion is not where the people are,” she said.
Nevertheless, Gallego accuses the Republican of lying because she had previously backed the old legislation. While running for state Governor in 2022, Lake said it was a “great” law but has now changed her position and wants a “common sense solution that Arizonans can support.”
Rep. Gallego does not believe that Lake has simply changed her mind but “saw the reaction” of Arizonans to the Supreme Court ruling and adopted her new stance because of it. Gallego said Lake was a “political opportunist.”