Sheriff Mark Lamb aims to unite divided Arizona GOP in Senate battle.

Arizona Sheriff Mark Lamb Aims to Unite Republicans and Win Over Independent Voters

Immigration and Border Security at the Forefront of Lamb’s Campaign

PHOENIX — Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, the sole Republican candidate running for Senate in Arizona, has been making waves within the GOP base. With a focus on immigration, strengthening border security, and criticizing COVID-19 vaccine requirements, Lamb has been working to raise his profile over the past couple of years.

After a series of disappointing statewide cycles for Republicans in Arizona, the 50-year-old sheriff of a county located between Phoenix and Tucson is positioning himself as a candidate who can bring together a fractured party. He also believes he can attract critical independent voters who have played a significant role in recent Arizona elections.

“The people of Arizona are hungry for somebody that’s authentic and wants to represent the people of Arizona, so that’s what I’m focused on,” Lamb said in an interview with the Washington Examiner.

Lamb, who has held office since 2017, announced his candidacy in early April. Currently, the field appears to be frozen after firebrand Kari Lake hinted at a run for the seat held by Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ). With Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) also vying for Sinema’s seat, the contest is shaping up to be a three-way battle. While Lake is expected to be the favorite for the Republican nomination, her narrow loss in the 2022 gubernatorial race raises questions about her electability, potentially leaving an opening for a candidate like Lamb.

“I can’t control what other people do or say, but I can control what I do and the effort that I put in,” Lamb said. “What I’m really trying to do is focus on the things we need to do, which includes fundraising, building name recognition, and really just showing the people of Arizona that I’m the proven conservative fighter.”

Since Sinema’s victory in 2018, Arizona has transformed from a solid red state to one of the country’s most competitive battlegrounds. President Joe Biden’s win in the state over former President Donald Trump in 2020 helped secure the White House for the Democrats. In December of the same year, Arizona saw two Democratic senators sworn in for the first time since 1952, with Mark Kelly joining Sinema. In 2022, Lake and three other Republicans running for major statewide offices suffered defeat, resulting in Democrats holding all major statewide positions for the first time since 1950.

“It’s been surprising and hard to watch. It’s part of the reason I’m in the race. I just couldn’t stand by and watch,” Lamb said. “I don’t want to be the guy that just complains about it. I want to do something about it.”

Lamb’s campaign will focus on cracking down on illegal immigration and drug smuggling at the border. In a video announcing his candidacy, he pledged to take on drug cartels and called for the U.S. military to “wipe them out just like we did to ISIS.” As the top law enforcement officer in Arizona’s third-most populous county, Lamb has firsthand experience dealing with human and drug traffickers, and he remains critical of the Biden administration’s handling of the southern border.

“Fortunately and unfortunately at the same time, border issues have become the No. 1 issue for most Arizonans, and I think for most Americans — and that honestly is right in my wheelhouse of things to be able to deal with and understand,” Lamb said. “I think with some of the main issues we’re dealing with, like border security and rising crime, there’s a lot of those things that I’m very well suited for, probably better than any candidate.”

While Lamb has been an outspoken Trump supporter in the past, he has decided not to endorse any candidate in the Republican presidential primary. With the former president losing Arizona in 2020 and Trump-aligned Senate candidate Blake Masters losing his race last year, Lamb remains focused on his own campaign rather than endorsing others.

“I’ve never gotten involved in endorsements in primaries. I feel like those are races that everybody needs to run for themselves,” Lamb said, sidestepping a question about whether he plans to endorse Trump’s third run for the White House.

Lamb’s campaign has faced scrutiny due to his previous support for Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his defense of those involved in the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. However, Lamb has distanced himself from these controversies and stated that he has seen “zero evidence” of fraud that could have affected the outcome of the 2020 election.

As Lamb seeks to court the more establishment wing of the Republican Party, he recently met with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and officials at the National Republican Senatorial Committee in Washington. McConnell, who has been critical of Trump-aligned candidates, is actively working to avoid repeating the mistakes of the 2022 midterm election cycle, where Republicans lost a seat, resulting in a 51-49 Senate Democratic majority.

“I was just in Washington, D.C., the other day, talking to a few more senators, the NRSC — again, talking about where we’re at with our race,” Lamb said. “We want to hopefully get the support of not just the Republicans and independents in the state of Arizona, but we’d love to have the support from a national level so that we can take the state back.”

McConnell recently indicated that Republicans are still assessing the Arizona Senate race and expressed some hesitation about whether the GOP wants to invest resources. Ahead of what could be a potentially contentious primary, Lamb is seen favorably by many Arizona Republicans, although some state operatives are unsure if he can come out on top in such a high-profile race.

“I think he’s a great guy, he’s done a great job as sheriff, and I do think he’s a good candidate for something,” said Daniel Scarpinato, a Republican strategist who previously served as former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey’s chief of staff. “For this race, it’s tough to see a path for Mark Lamb. I think he’d really have to be a kind of breakout sensation and have something that catapults him to be able to be more known and get through the primary,” Scarpinato said.

Despite personal tragedy, with the loss of his son, his son’s fiancee, and their daughter in a car crash, Lamb remains determined to seek higher office. Their deaths served as a turning point in his decision to run for Senate.

“When you lose somebody like that, it’s always with you,” Lamb said. “It does play a major role in why we decided to do this, and it probably was the final thing that made my wife and I feel like this is definitely something we felt compelled to do.”

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