Arizona Republican Party Chairman Resigns Amid Pressure from Senate Candidate Kari Lake
In a stunning turn of events, Jeff DeWit, the chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, announced his resignation on Wednesday. DeWit claims that he was forced to step down due to pressure from GOP Senate candidate Kari Lake. The resignation came shortly after The Daily Mail released an audio recording of a conversation between DeWit and Lake, in which DeWit discusses the financial benefits of staying out of Arizona’s 2024 Senate race. According to DeWit, Lake threatened to release a more damaging recording if he did not resign immediately.
Lake’s senior advisers, Caroline Wren and Garrett Ventry, deny DeWit’s claims and label them as false. They released a statement saying, “No one from the Kari Lake campaign threatened or blackmailed DeWit.” They criticize DeWit for his unethical behavior and his failure to apologize to Arizona Republicans.
DeWit, a former Trump campaign chief operating officer and NASA chief financial officer, explains that the conversation took place at Lake’s home ten months ago when she was working for his private business. In a statement posted by the Arizona Republican Party on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), DeWit accuses Lake of setting him up to gain control over the state party.
DeWit’s resignation comes after an audio recording was made public, in which he discusses the idea of companies putting Lake on their payroll to prevent her from running for office. He suggests that she takes a break from politics and returns to her previous endeavors after a few years. However, Lake firmly rejects the idea of being bought off, stating that this is about the country and not money.
Lake’s aides, Wren and Ventry, assert that DeWit attempted to bribe her. They praise Lake for rejecting his multiple attempts to offer money and corporate board seats in exchange for not running for public office. They believe that she will be an incredible senator for the people of Arizona.
Lake expresses her disgust with DeWit’s conduct and criticizes his performance as the head of the Arizona GOP. She believes that his resignation came too late and that he should have apologized and committed to doing better. Lake does not respond to the allegations made by DeWit in his resignation letter, where he claims that she threatened to release a more damaging recording if he did not resign promptly.
DeWit defends himself, stating that his conversations with Lake were transparent and meant to offer perspective, not coercion. He accuses Lake of exploiting private interactions for personal gain and raises concerns about her habit of secretly recording personal and private conversations. DeWit questions how effective Lake can be as a United States Senator if she cannot be trusted to engage in private and confidential conversations.
This resignation is just another chapter in the ongoing turmoil within the Arizona GOP, which has been divided between establishment Republicans and a faction aligned with former President Donald Trump. DeWit was seen as a bridge between these factions due to his work for Trump’s campaign and administration.
Arizona is expected to play a crucial role in the 2024 elections as a highly contested presidential battleground and with a key Senate race on the ballot. Lake is one of several GOP contenders for the Senate seat currently held by independent Senator Kyrsten Sinema. The leading Democratic candidate for the seat is US Representative Ruben Gallego.
The political landscape in Arizona is constantly shifting, and this recent development adds another layer of complexity to an already contentious race. As the 2024 elections approach, all eyes will be on Arizona to see how this resignation and the ongoing Republican infighting will impact the outcome.