Former Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake said she doesn’t “want to run again” after underperforming President-elect Donald Trump in her state and losing to Sen.-elect Ruben Gallego (D-AZ).
Lake made the comments Saturday at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest. Trump recently nominated her as director of Voice of America, a state media network.
“We’re not where we need to be on elections,” said Lake. “And that’s one of the reasons I don’t want to run again, to be honest. Why put yourself through that torture again?”
Lake lost to Gallego 50.1% to 47.7%, while Trump outpaced Vice President Kamala Harris 52.2% to 46.7%. Lake used similar rhetoric to Trump, once referring to herself as “Trump in heels,” but she never quite caught the same popularity. Trump even reportedly sought to distance himself from Lake at one point.
Nevertheless, she praised Trump’s victory in her speech to the young Republicans.
“Thankfully, President Trump’s victory, it was too big to rig,” she said.
Lake said her future political plans involve her new position at VOA.
“I am gonna go help President Trump in Washington, D.C. That’s what I’m gonna do,” she said.
Her political career could be over. Lake lost a narrow gubernatorial race in 2022 to Gov. Katie Hobbs (D-AZ) and followed that performance with a loss to Gallego two years later. Despite her fight in both campaigns, Lake inadvertently helped Democrats capture the former Republican-dominated state.
Trump recently endorsed Republican Karrin Taylor Robson, who faced Lake in the 2022 primary for governor, in the 2026 gubernatorial race. Hobbs will likely seek reelection and will be the Democratic nominee.
Such an endorsement likely excludes Lake from the 2026 race, meaning she would have to wait until 2028 for another significant election in the state. By then, Trump will be on his way out of office.
