Karrin Taylor Robson launches run for Arizona governor, touting Trump's backing

Republican businesswoman Karrin Taylor Robson announced Wednesday that she is running for governor of Arizona, touting support from President Donald Trump. 

“I thank President Trump for his strong endorsement and look forward to working with him to secure our border and make Arizona safe again,” Taylor Robson said in a statement announcing her run, which repeatedly mentioned Trump.

“Katie Hobbs has made it harder to live, work, and raise a family safely in this state,” she added, referring to the state’s Democratic governor, who is up for re-election next year. “Like President Trump, I know how to create jobs. And like President Trump, I will not rest until our border is secure and Arizona families are safe.”

Taylor Robson’s news release pointed to Trump’s comments at a Turning Point Action event in Arizona in December as evidence that she has his backing. 

“Are you running for governor? I think so, Karrin. Because if you do, you’re gonna have my support, OK? You’re going to have my support,” Trump said at the time.

Taylor Robson ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2022, losing the GOP primary to Trump’s preferred candidate at that time, former newscaster Kari Lake.

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Lake went on to lose a close race to Hobbs, after which she made unfounded claims about voter fraud. Lake then lost a Senate run by a wider margin last year, even as Trump carried the battleground state by 5.5 percentage points. 

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Although she is touting Trump’s support this time around, Taylor Robson won't have the primary to herself. 

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Republican Rep. Andy Biggs, the former chairman of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus and a longtime vocal Trump backer, is also running. 

Asked at the Capitol last month whether he would be able to secure Trump’s endorsement, given his comments about Taylor Robson, Biggs told reporters: “That would be up to him entirely, obviously. I mean, I like to think we have a good relationship. But I think that the MAGA people in Arizona will support me. We’ll find out.”

The governor’s race is expected to be one of the most competitive in the country. Hobbs won her first term in 2022 by less than 1 percentage point, and Trump's win in the state last year came after he narrowly lost it in 2020.