In a video accompanying his campaign debut, Lamb wears his signature beige Stetson cowboy hat and vows to preserve gun rights and help secure the nation’s border with Mexico.|| Drew Angerer/Getty Images (modified)
Kari Lake, last year’s Republican gubernatorial nominee, and others in her party are also weighing Senate bids that could put the GOP on a path to another contentious primary.
By Ronald J. Hansen || The Arizona Republic
Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb officially launched Tuesday his long-expected U.S. Senate campaign, making him the first prominent Republican to enter the race for the seat held by independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema.
The two-term sheriff told The Arizona Republic the December death of his son and infant granddaughter in a car accident helped push him to enter a race in which he intends to make law and order — especially on the border — a major emphasis.
In an hourlong interview, Lamb cast himself as a defender of the Constitution and acknowledged he needed to learn more on various federal policy matters, but said he plans to bring an everyman background to a Washington awash in excessive spending.
“Six months ago, I wasn’t interested,” Lamb said of the race. “After this last election I just think Arizona needs a proven conservative fighter that’s going to stand up for the people of Arizona — fight for the values we have, which is God, family, freedom.”
In a video accompanying his campaign debut, Lamb wears his signature beige Stetson cowboy hat and vows to preserve gun rights and help secure the nation’s border with Mexico.
Cooper Lamb (right), the son of Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, with his fiancee and daughter.
He notes that his son Cooper had battled addiction and spent time in the jail Lamb oversees before the fatal accident in Gilbert.
“I think my ultimate point is none of us are immune” from the problems of fentanyl, he told The Republic. “It doesn’t matter who you are, what position you have, how much money you have. Fentanyl and the fentanyl poisonings are affecting Arizona families and American families every day. Those families need someone who is going to fight for them.”
“I’m somebody who understands their plight. The economy is struggling, people are struggling economically. I understand that; I’m not wealthy. I get it. … I think people want to see that authenticity and that realness that I think we’ve been missing in politics.”
Lamb, 50, brings a broad smile and a telegenic presence honed by his many appearances on Fox News, his own reality TV-style policing shows and national appearances with sheriffs groups.
His critics also see someone who has flirted with conspiracy-minded fringe elements in the wake of the 2020 presidential election that former President Donald Trump baselessly claims was stolen through widespread fraud.
His widely anticipated entry into the race comes as Kari Lake, last year’s Republican gubernatorial nominee, and others in her party are also weighing Senate bids that could put the GOP on a path to another contentious primary.
