Kari Lake loses Arizona senate race

Kari Lake
Kari Lake previously caused controversy when she refused to accept her defeat in a run to be Arizona state governor - Rebecca Noble/AFP via Getty Images

Kari Lake has lost the Arizona Senate race, projections show.

Democrat Ruben Gallego will beat Ms Lake and replace outgoing independent senator Kyrsten Sinema, according to a forecast by Decision Desk HQ.

Mr Gallego, a former marine and congressman, led his Republican rival by 45,000 votes as of Sunday morning with 89 per cent of the vote tallied.

Other authorities are yet to call the race.

The news comes despite Donald Trump, a close ally of Ms Lake, winning Arizona in the presidential election by a margin of almost 200,000 votes.

A former Fox News host, Ms Lake is yet to issue a comment but had pledged to accept the results of the election, having refused to concede an Arizona governor race she lost in 2022.

“I will accept the results of the election,” Ms Lake said earlier this week. “I have had a few concerns but we’ve done a lot of legwork to prevent any problems.”

The underdog

Ms Lake has long been an underdog in the Senate race but appeared to be experiencing a late surge this month, with several late polls placing her ahead of her Democrat rival.

It marks the end of a bad-tempered race between the pair. Mr Gallego had accused her of being an election denier and extremist, pointing to her support for a near-total abortion ban in the state dating from 1864.

He also accused Ms Lake, who was given a prominent speaking slot at the Republican National Convention in July, of spending more time at Mr Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida than on the border.

“We’re going to trust her now? This is the same person that’s still lying about winning the 2022 election, and yet we’re going to trust her,” Mr Gallego said at a debate last month.

“She has failed the basic test of honesty. Why would we trust her with our daughters?”

Several GOP donors had expressed doubts about Ms Lake’s likelihood of winning the Senate seat, noting her clashes with the family of John McCain, the late Arizona senator and former Republican presidential candidate.

The news comes shortly after Jacky Rosen, the Nevada Democratic senator, won re-election, beating a challenge by Republican Sam Brown.

Nevertheless, Republicans have regained control of the Senate in what will be a boost to Mr Trump when he enters the White House in January.