Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake strictly follows the far-right scenario and defends the fraud theory known as the “Donald Trump suit”.
Lake, 53, isn’t impressed by the nickname: “You can call me Trump in any dress you want.”
He’s taking advantage of his successful career as a Fox News host to break into politics, and he’s taking advantage of his ideological affiliation with Trump to boost his candidacy for the Republican governor of Arizona.
Like her mentor, she disqualified her Democratic opponent, Katie Hobbs, in the November 8 election.
Lake’s slogan of “Arizona First” won over enthusiastic supporters of the former president, who was defeated by Democrat Joe Biden in 2020.
“We are gathered in this beautiful place to make sure we get our country back,” said Lake at a packed evangelical church in Phoenix.
Immigration, crime, and alleged electoral fraud are themes centralizing the speech of this woman, whom some analysts see as the obvious candidate to fight alongside Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
‘authentic’
“He gave up his 30-year television career to serve the people of Arizona. That says something,” one supporter, John Mendibles, said at one of his rallies.
The bond between Lake and his followers is so intimate that he doesn’t even suffer from disagreements.
What matters to the candidate is “The Truth,” lauds Jo Glabman, who will vote for Lake despite her opposition to the criminalization of abortion.
“I believe in everything it stands for (…) He wants a wall at the border,” says Glabman.
Kari Lake grew up in rural Iowa, in the heart of the United States, and is the youngest of nine children to a teacher father and nurse mother.
A mother of two, of Christian faith, wears a cross around her neck.
She reveals her television experience with her aesthetics, flawless haircuts, warm-toned make-up and personalized dresses.
“The new face of MAGA republicanism,” says political scientist Gina Woodall, referring to the slogan Make America Great Again.
“In speech, it makes Trumpism seem less extreme,” says the Arizona State University professor, who believes being a woman works in Lake’s favor and softens the headlines’ radical stances.
Skeptical about the use of masks and the effectiveness of vaccines against covid-19.
In an interview with The New York Times in August, he described President Joe Biden as “an illegitimate idiot in the White House.”
The election result, questioned by the Trumpist wing, has passed many audits, including by the Republican Party itself.
But Lake claims that as governor, he will not forward minutes confirming Biden’s victory, a role that governors have to play in the American electoral system.
This, along with his promise of electoral reform, raises alarm among critics, who see him as a “threat to democracy”.
metamorphosis
Others see a skeptical and chameleon-like disposition. “His transformation is political drama … Now he’s a Christian warrior,” says Phoenix transvestite Richard Stevens, who has been a friend of Lake’s for decades.
In June, Stevens posted photos of Barbra Seville with Lake after the candidate posted a homophobic post.
“He’s a dangerous hypocrite,” says Stevens, who claims he even performed at the political party on his birthday.
Steve Krafft, a former colleague at Fox, also questions his convictions.
“I don’t know if Trump really believes he won the election or if he’s just saying it to win the government,” he told AFP.
According to Krafft, Lake’s profile was center-left and convinced he was a fan of former President Barack Obama.
The candidate contributed financially to the presidential campaigns of Democrats Obama and John Kerry. But in 2018, social media shares began to shift to the right.
“That’s when he started complaining about our news and went so far as to say we were ‘too tough’ on the Republicans,” Krafft recalls.
Lake doesn’t see political contradictions as a bad thing.
“A lot of people have changed their minds,” the candidate said at a press conference in Phoenix. “How is this [em 2016] “We elected Trump president,” he said.
source: Noticias
