Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake called her fellow Republican opponent Karrin Taylor Robson “Doug Ducey in a dress” in a recent interview on One America News, which was intended to be an insult against her.
However, many Republican voters will be asking themselves the question: What’s wrong with that?
Gov. Doug Ducey is easily one of the most vocal conservative governors in the country, especially with how he signed into law legislation ranging from increased abortion restrictions to a flat tax. Lake was more specifically taking a jab at Ducey’s approach to the southern border, even though he has been a vocal critic of the Biden administration’s poor handling of the situation.
“[Doug Ducey] is head of the Republican Governors Association. They spend money in support of GOP candidates in general elections,” ABC 15’s Garrett Archer noted in a tweet in response to Lake’s comments.
By carelessly calling Robson a “RINO” for her alignment with Ducey, Lake is completely ignoring a crucial factor for becoming the next governor: electability. The incumbent governor won reelection with 56% of the vote in 2018, according to Politico. This cycle will be more competitive with Secretary of State Katie Hobbs as the likely Democratic nominee.
In Lake’s book, being a faux Republican apparently means having prior experience serving the community in a political capacity, such as being a precinct committeewoman and serving on the Arizona Board of Regents.
As Laurie Roberts noted in her column for the Arizona Republic last month, this might be a sign of panic from the Lake team. Recent polling has shown that Lake may have maxed out her support from populist Republicans in the state, and Robson continues to rise partly due to her television advertising. According to an OH Predictive poll of 500 likely Republican voters taken in early April, Lake is at 29%, which is not too far ahead of Robson’s 22%.
While Lake’s endorsement from former President Donald Trump certainly has its perks, it also has limits. If she wants to maintain momentum to win the August primary, she’ll need to focus less on attacking her opponents and more on crafting a winnable message. If she does not do that now, it will be an extremely tough transition for her to make if she advances to the general election. Independents will be hesitant to put Lake into the governor’s office if there’s no rhetorical pivot, which could spell disaster for Arizona Republicans.
Cameron Arcand is a columnist at PJ Media and a student at Arizona State University.
