Arizona Governor-elect Katie Hobbs talks priorities in one-on-one interview
PHOENIX - As the dust begins to settle on the 2022 midterm elections, we sat down with Arizona Governor-elect Katie Hobbs for a one-on-one interview.
During the interview, Hobbs, who is set to become the first Democratic governor of Arizona in years, talked about a number of issues, including the border crisis and the 2022 elections.
On the election
"When you look back at this, do you feel like you won this election? Did Kari Lake lose this election? How did it play out," Hobbs was asked.
"I think this election was never about Democrats and Republicans, and I've said this many times. It was about sanity over chaos, and I think that voters of Arizona clearly chose sanity, and they had enough opportunity to see the chaos Kari Lake would cause, and I'm here today as a result of that," Hobbs replied.
"Mohave County is joining Cochise County in delaying the certification. What can be done about that? How big of a concern is it that there are two counties that may not certify the election?" Hobbs was asked.
"I can assure Arizona voters this election is going to be certified. Certification is simply a ministerial function. Counties don't have any statutory authority not to certify, and my office will take every legal steps necessary to certify by the statutory deadline and make sure this moves forward. Again this is unfortunate. It's a consequence of people using misinformation now to sow doubt and undermine the systems," said Hobbs.
Hobbs is Secretary of State, but she will be succeeded in office by Democrat Adrian Fontes in 2023. Fontes is projected to win his race against Republican Mark Finchem.
On the Border
During the interview, Governor-elect Hobbs said President Biden has contacted her.
"He was incredibly congratulatory, and I'm looking forward to working with him on issues that are important to Arizona, primarily border security," said Hobbs.
"What are you hoping for out of the federal government?" Hobbs was asked.
"Well, I would love for the President or whoever to come down and look at the issues we're seeing on the border, and address the security needs we have in Arizona. I know a lot of drug trafficking is happening through the cartels in Ports of Entry, not necessarily smugglers crossing through the desert. There's a real crisis, and we need the federal government to step up," Hobbs replied.
"So, you want them to physically come down here, and potentially the President of the United States, and see it first hand?" Hobbs was asked.
"Oh yea. Absolutely," Hobbs replied.