AZ-SEN

Flake Picks Up Tea Party Group Endorsement In Arizona

Evan McMorris-Santoro | February 14, 2011, 6:46PM

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ)

Hours after Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) announced his campaign for the seat being vacated by Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ), tea party umbrella group FreedomWorks, best known as the arm of the movement led by former House Republican leader Dick Armey, endorsed Flake in an email blast sent by its PAC.

"Endorsing Jeff Flake is a no-brainer," FreedomWorks president Matt Kibbe said in a statement. "He's principled, he's consistent, and he's fearless in the fight for lower taxes, less government, and more individual freedom. If the Tea Party is going to reduce the size of government, it will need more Jeff Flakes in the United States Senate."

The backing of FreedomWorks helps solidify Flake as the national fiscal conservative choice. He's already got the endorsement of the Club For Growth, which has promised to lend a hand in getting him elected.

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AZ-SEN

Poll: Sheriff Joe Leads AZ-SEN Primary Race

Evan McMorris-Santoro | February 14, 2011, 5:50PM

Sheriff Joe Arpaio

It's too soon to crown anyone Arizona's next Senator -- but on the same day Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) announced his intent to run, a new poll of Grand Canyon state Republicans shows Sheriff Joe Arpaio leading the field to replace the retiring Sen. Jon Kyl (R).

Arpaio has not announced his intention to run for the open Senate seat next year, though there's long been speculation that Arpaio -- an absolute rockstar among the anti-immigration set in the GOP -- is interested in higher office. His name has been mentioned among those that might run for Kyl's old seat, and it's certain he'd enter the race with significant financial support from his national allies.

Roll Call's David Drucker breaks the news that Arpaio's statewide Republican support would be strong as well. The poll from Summit Consulting Group shows Arpaio with a narrow lead over Flake, who just made his run for Senate official on Monday.

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AZ-SEN

GOP Budget Hero Aims To Be Arizona's Next Senator

Evan McMorris-Santoro | February 14, 2011, 10:50AM

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ)

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), whose views on earmarks and government spending have made him a hero of the Republican party's fiscal right, is throwing his hat into the ring to replace retiring Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ).

Flake announced his candidacy at a press conference Monday morning, less than a week after Kyl said he would be retiring after more than two decades in Washington.

Democrats have not yet said what they'll do to contest the open Senate seat, though some have said the recovering Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) could make a run if she fully recovers. With Flake, the Republicans now have an imposing candidate with national credentials, who's sure to please the anti-government crowd.

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AZ-SEN

AZ Dem: Giffords Should Have 'Right Of First Refusal' On 2012 Senate Race

Eric Kleefeld | February 10, 2011, 1:06PM

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ)

There could be a significant delay before any Democratic candidates declare for the Senate seat of Republican Whip Jon Kyl, who has announced his retirement. As TPMDC has learned, for some time one of the top possible Dem candidates for the seat has been Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who is in physical therapy after she was shot in the head during a constituent event last month.

A Democratic source in Arizona told us that possible candidates for the seat include Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, former Reps. Harry Mitchell and Ann Kirkpatrick (who were defeated in the 2010 Republican wave), and 2010 candidate for attorney general Felecia Rotellini. Interestingly, the source said there had not been indications that Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who was previously the state's two-term governor, might run.

However, the source said, Giffords had long been viewed as a top-tier candidate to either challenge Kyl or run for an open seat, before the events in January. "In our view, she ought to have the right of first refusal," the source said, "and hopefully others will allow her the space and time to recover and make that decision."

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AZ-SEN

Jon Kyl Retires: 'There Is A Time For Every Thing'

Eric Kleefeld | February 10, 2011, 12:28PM

Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ)

Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ) has officially announced that he is retiring at the 2012 election, after three six-year terms in the Senate and four two-year terms in the House of Representatives -- a total of 26 years in Washington.

Kyl, who will be 70 years old at the time of the 2012 election, told a press conference in Phoenix that when he was first elected to the Senate in 1994, he had anticipated that he would serve only two terms. But when 2006 came around, and Republicans were not performing well politically, the party's chances of holding the seat had been a factor in his decision to run again.

"But there comes a time when you have to consider other things," said Kyl. "In the Bible it says, of course, that there is a time for every thing."

Republican sources have told TPMDC that among the likely candidates for the seat is Rep. Jeff Flake. Others could possibly run from the Arizona House delegation, such as Rep. Trent Franks or the recently-retired former Rep. John Shadegg.

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AZ-SEN

Report: Senate GOP Whip Jon Kyl To Retire

Eric Kleefeld | February 10, 2011, 10:22AM

Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ)

Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ) will hold a surprise press conference in Phoenix at 12 p.m. ET (10 a.m. local time), the Arizona Republic reports, to announce whether he will seek re-election.

The Republic notes that Kyl will make his announcement "amid speculation that he may retire." Kyl was first elected to the Senate in an open-seat race in 1994, after eight previous years in the House, and will be 70 years old on Election Day 2012.

So let's see what happens.

Late Update: Politico is reporting that Kyl wil retire.