Kari Lake skips out on Arizona Senate GOP primary debate as she looks ahead to November

TUCSON, Ariz. — On the eve of the presidential debate, GOP Senate candidate Kari Lake decided to skip out on her own.

The MAGA firebrand and frontrunner for her party’s Senate nomination in the key battleground state was invited to participate in a formal debate Wednesday night against her lone GOP primary competitor, Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb. She instead opted to host a Tucson town hall with a former UFC fighter, leaving Lamb alone on the debate stage.

Lake’s campaign billed the event as a town hall for Republicans, independents and Democrats alike, as she looks ahead to a general election fight that will help determine which party controls the Senate. She only made one reference to Lamb throughout the hour-long event without naming him explicitly.

“We’re gonna make sure that we get out and vote, and we need to vote in July, even though I’m up 31 points over my competitor in July,” said Lake of Lamb.

Instead, Lake is mostly looking ahead to her likely matchup with Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego for the seat being vacated by Democratic-turned-independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema. Lake has attacked him as a “swamp rat,” “deadbeat,” and on Wednesday, “Nancy Pelosi with a beard.”

Meanwhile, during Lake’s town hall, Lamb participated in a roughly 30-minute Q&A organized by Arizona’s Clean Elections Commission in lieu of the debate that never was. Lamb also avoided uttering his GOP rival’s name, though he took a thinly veiled jab at her for not showing up.

“If Kari Lake were here, what’s the first thing you’d ask her?” the moderator asked Lamb on Wednesday night. “I’m not running against anybody,” responded Lamb.

“This is a job interview, and I’m here tonight,” said Lamb. “I’d never hire anybody that didn’t show up for a