GOP Arizona Gov. Ducey congratulates Democrat Hobbs on win

Republican Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey on Wednesday congratulated Democrat Katie Hobbs on winning the state’s gubernatorial election as her opponent, Republican Kari Lake, refuses to concede the race. 

Last week, Hobbs was projected to narrowly win the race for Arizona’s governor’s mansion. With 99% of the votes counted as of Wednesday, Hobbs will beat Lake by about 17,000 votes in the Grand Canyon State. The margin is above the threshold that would trigger an automatic recount.

“Today I congratulated Governor-elect Katie Hobbs on her victory in a hard-fought race and offered my full cooperation as she prepares to assume the leadership of the State of Arizona,” Ducey said in a statement.

“My administration will work to make this transition as smooth and seamless as possible,” he added. “Our duty is to ensure that Arizona’s 24th Governor and her team can hit the ground running and continue our state’s incredible momentum.”

Lake, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, has raised election integrity concerns centered on Arizona’s Maricopa County, where on Election Day, 70 polling places experienced voting machine issues. However residents of the state’s most populous county were still able to cast ballots, according to state election officials.

Lake’s campaign called for an extension of in-person voting on Election Day because of the snafu in Maricopa County, but a judge rejected the request, arguing that there was no evidence that a voter was unable to cast a ballot on Nov. 8. 

“This is just beyond 2020. I mean what they did in 2020, it looks like they did it again, and then some. And for the governor, if he says he’s going to certify this, and 

Katie Hobbs to certify this, I think they really better think long and hard,” Lake told Steve Bannon on his “War Room” podcast Wednesday.

Lake has filed a lawsuit against Maricopa County election officials seeking more information about the problems at the polls and how many voters were affected. 

County election officials have until Monday to certify the results of the 2022 midterm races. Cochise and Mohave counties have so far refused to certify their election results but they are expected to be compelled to do so by Monday. 

Arizona’s secretary of state, who happens to be Hobbs, then has until Dec. 5 to certify the election results.