Democrat Hiral Tipirneni and Republican Debbie Lesko face off Tuesday in the special election for Arizona’s 8th Congressional District.
The district is deeply red — President Donald Trump won the district by 20 points in 2016 — but the race could test the strength of the Republican base in a scandal-plagued year. Republican Rep. Trent Franks resigned in December amid allegations that he had offered a female staffer $5 million to be a surrogate for him and his wife. Franks was considered one of the most conservative members of the House.
Tipirneni is a former emergency room doctor and has made this race all about health care, deriding Republican attacks on the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security. Lesko is anti-abortion, has run on a “tough on immigration” platform, and says she supports Trump but doesn’t approve all of his antics.
Polls showed the race appeared to be tightening leading up to Election Day. Even if Lesko wins, a close race in safe Republican territory could raise red flags for the GOP.
Jeff Flake sees a “wake-up call” after the Arizona special election. Does the rest of the GOP?
Ralph Freso/Getty ImagesRetiring Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake said this week that Rep.-elect Debbie Lesko’s win in this week’s special election isn’t worth celebrating.
“It’s just the latest of many wake-up calls we have seen,” he said. “It’s a concern.”
Read Article >Live results: Lesko and Tipirneni face off in Arizona’s special election
Republican Debbie Lesko and Democrat Hiral Tipirneni face off Tuesday, April 24, for the Arizona 8 special election. AP Photos/Ross D. Franklin and Matt YorkRepublican Debbie Lesko won the election against Democrat Hiral Tipirneni in the special election for Arizona’s Eighth Congressional District. Decision Desk HQ called the race at 12:39 am Eastern time on Wednesday.
More than 151,000 ballots were cast before election day, and registered Republicans are outvoting Democrats 49 percent to 28 percent, with a median voter age of 67, according to the Cook Political Report’s Dave Wasserman. That margin shrunk significantly as the night went on, with Lesko up by about 6 points as the final tally was coming in.
Read Article >Republican Debbie Lesko wins Arizona special election — by way less than Trump did in 2016
Debbie Lesko win Arizona special election. AP Photo/Matt YorkRepublican Debbie Lesko has defeated Democrat Hiral Tipirneni in the special election for Arizona’s Eighth Congressional District. But Tuesday night’s race should still give Republicans pause.
In a deeply conservative district, Tipirneni was able to substantially narrow Lesko’s margin of victory over Donald Trump’s in 2016. And the national Republican Party and outside GOP groups poured more than $1 million into winning the seat that will be up again this November.
Read Article >Arizona special election 2018: ALS patient and activist Ady Barkan stumps for Democrat Hiral Tipirneni
Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesProgressive activist Ady Barkan, whose personal experiences with ALS received national recognition during the GOP’s tax bill vote last year, is gearing up for a new fight: helping Democrats win in 2018.
He’s starting with Tuesday’s special election in Arizona’s Eighth Congressional District, to replace former Republican Rep. Trent Franks. The Eighth District is a conservative one, and a long shot for Democrats, but they are putting their hopes in Hiral Tipirneni, a former doctor challenging Republican Debbie Lesko.
Read Article >Report: Rep. Trent Franks, who is resigning immediately, offered staffer $5 million to be his baby surrogate
Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ), left, announced he is resigning immediately. Alex Wong/Getty ImagesRep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) resigned from the House of Representatives Friday, citing his wife’s sudden hospitalization, despite announcing yesterday that he would wait to resign until January — just as details of the lawmaker’s inappropriate behavior with his female staff broke in the press.
The Associated Press reported that Franks offered a female staffer $5 million to serve as a surrogate for him and his wife, an allegation that is being investigated by the House Ethics Committee. According to Politico’s reporting, some female aides were concerned that Franks, who is a staunch pro-life conservative and is against surrogacy procedures that discard embryos, was implying having sexual relations with his aides; it was not made clear to the staffers whether Franks meant in vitro fertilization or sexual intercourse.
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