PHOENIX (AP) \u2014 Arizona Republicans voted Saturday to censure Cindy McCain and two prominent GOP officials who have found themselves crosswise with former President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n
The censures of Sen. John McCain\u2019s widow, former Sen. Jeff Flake and Gov. Doug Ducey are merely symbolic. But they show the party\u2019s foot soldiers are focused on enforcing loyalty to Trump, even in the wake of an election that saw Arizona inch away from its staunchly Republican roots.<\/p>\n
Party activists also reelected controversial Chairwoman Kelli Ward, who has been one of Trump\u2019s most unflinching supporters and among the most prolific promoters of his baseless allegations of election fraud.<\/p>\n
The Arizona GOP\u2019s combative focus has delighted Trump\u2019s staunchest supporters and worried Republican insiders who have watched the party lose ground in the suburbs as the influence of its traditional conservative establishment has faded in favor of Trump. A growing electorate of young Latinos and newcomers bringing their more liberal politics from back home have further hurt the GOP.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a time for choosing for Republicans. Are we going to be the conservative party?\u201d said Kirk Adams, a former state House speaker and chief of staff to Ducey. \u201cOr is this a party … that\u2019s loyal to a single person?\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a question of Republican identity that party officials and activists are facing across the country following Trump\u2019s 2020 loss, and particularly after a mob of his supporters laid siege on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.<\/p>\n
Nowhere is the question more acute than Arizona, where the state GOP\u2019s unflinching loyalty to Trump stands out even in a party that\u2019s been remade everywhere in the image of the former president.<\/p>\n
Ward has relentlessly \u2014 but unsuccessfully \u2014 sued to overturn the election results. The party has used its social media accounts to urge followers to fight and perhaps even to die in support of Trump\u2019s false claims of victory. Two of the state\u2019s four Republican congressmen are accused of playing a role in organizing the Jan. 6 rally that turned violent.<\/p>\n
After dominating Arizona politics for decades, Republicans now find themselves on their heels in the state\u2019s highest offices. President Joe Biden narrowly eked out a victory here, becoming just the second Democrat in more than five decades to win the state. Consecutive victories in 2018 and 2020 gave Democrats control of both U.S. Senate seats for the first time in nearly 70 years.<\/p>\n
Ward, a physician and former state legislator who lost two Republican primaries for the U.S. Senate, defeated three challengers to win a second term.<\/p>\n
In a brief interview, Ward acknowledged \u201cdisappointment at the top of the ticket\u201d but said she and many other Republicans still question the results showing victories for Biden and Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly. Judges have rejected eight lawsuits challenging Arizona\u2019s election results.<\/p>\n
Ward pointed to GOP successes down the ballot, noting Republicans defied expectations in local races.<\/p>\n
Ward said she\u2019s a \u201cTrump Republican\u201d who will \u201calways put America first, who believes in faith, family and freedom.\u201d The way forward for the GOP, she said, is keeping Trump\u2019s 74 million voters engaged.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, I will be radical about those things because those are the things that keep this country great,\u201d Ward said. \u201cThe people who are complaining are the people who actually put us in this spot where we are in Arizona, people who have been mamby pamby, lie down and allow the Democrats to walk all over them.\u201d<\/p>\n
The censures target some of Arizona\u2019s most prominent Republicans,<\/p>\n
Cindy McCain endorsed Biden and became a powerful surrogate for the Democrat following years of attacks by Trump on her husband.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe (Ward) should be reminded that my husband never lost an Arizona election since his first win in 1982,\u201d McCain said in a statement before the vote.<\/p>\n
Flake was one of the few congressional Republicans who was openly critical of Trump for failing to adhere to conservative values. He declined to run for reelection in 2018 and endorsed Biden in last year\u2019s election.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf condoning the President\u2019s behavior is required to stay in the Party\u2019s good graces, I\u2019m just fine being on the outs,\u201d Flake wrote on Twitter before the vote.<\/p>\n
Ducey is being targeted for his restrictions on individuals and businesses to contain the spread of COVID-19. While it\u2019s not mentioned in the proposed censure, he had a high-profile break with the president when he signed the certification of Biden\u2019s victory.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese resolutions are of no consequence whatsoever and the people behind them have lost whatever little moral authority they may have once had,\u201d said Sara Mueller, Ducey\u2019s political director.<\/p>\n
Many traditional conservatives fret that the censures and Ward\u2019s combative style turn off the swing voters and ticket-splitters who handed Democrats their recent victories. But they say the party\u2019s decisions will reflect only the views of about 1,500 committed activists.<\/p>\n
John McCain was censured by the state GOP in 2014 and went on to comfortably win a Republican primary over Ward and a general election. The self-described maverick, known best for his willingness to buck his party, had strained relations with the state party for much of his career but was consistently reelected by wide margins.<\/p>\n
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Associated Press writer Paul Davenport in Phoenix contributed.<\/p>\n