Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake continues to refuse to concede her race against Katie Hobbs, which was called by numerous news networks Monday evening after a batch of votes from Maricopa County further solidified her opponent’s lead.
Now, the Republican’s defiant message for her followers on Twitter is being mocked by Ms Hobbs’s supporters and Democrats around the country.
Ms Lake, a staunch supporter of former President Donald Trump, was one of numerous 2020 election conspiracists running in last Tuesday’s midterms. That wing of the GOP suffered agonising defeats across the board as the elections unfolded, with Doug Mastriano losing in Pensylvania, Dan Cox being defeated in Maryland, Tudor Dixon losing in Michigan among others.
The Arizona governor’s race remained the last hope for the hardcore Trump wing of the GOP to score a major victory this cycle, and as a result her supporters such as former White House staffer Steve Bannon are livid and crying fraud in the wake of the race’s conclusion. “DO NOT CONCEDE” was trending across the US early Tuesday morning.
Democrats, meanwhile, celebrated on Twitter and chose Ms Lake’s refutation of “BS” as an avenue for landing some brutal critiques.
“As it turns out, yes, yes they did,” wrote former Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill. She added: “Also please let Biggs and the other 2 Republicans that were elected narrowly last night that their elections were BS too.”
“Correct, @KariLake! This is why Arizonans rejected you. Glad you get it now!”, chimed in Gavin Smith, a conservative Forbes contributor.
David Hogg, a Parkland shooting survivor and founder of March For Our Lives, added: “Here’s your participation trophy 🏆 And a little gold star sticker ⭐️ ”.
The list of Ms Lake’s opponents who chose to mock her over the tweet was clearing the thousands by Tuesday afternoon, just 14 hours after it was posted. It was amplified by many journalists who clearly remembered Ms Lake’s vow to make their lives miserable should she become governor.
Others who commented on the Republican’s furious refusal to accept reality included Democratic strategist David Axelrod, Congressman Ritchie Torres and the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump conservative group.
Ms Lake led her Democratic opponent Katie Hobbs in polls taken in the race’s final days; delays in counting votes across Arizona meant that her race was one of the last to be called.
