'Unmitigated disaster': Prominent Arizona Republican calls for changes within the party
PHOENIX - In the recent midterm election, a "Red Wave" that some predict will overtake Arizona failed to materialize, with Democratic candidates, including Sen. Mark Kelly and outgoing Secretary of State Katie Hobbs projected to defeat their Trump-endorsed opponents, Blake Masters (in the Senate Race) and Kari Lake (in the governor's race).
In the aftermath of Masters' and Lake's projected defeat, some Republicans in Arizona are speaking out about the party's future.
"I think the Republican Party right now is badly broken," said former Rep. Matt Salmon (R).
Salmon, who dropped out of the GOP gubernatorial primary in June, said the party should be more focused on candidates who will appeal to independents.
Salmon also said the Republican Party itself has changed during his decades spent in politics.
"It has gone from the party of when Ronald Reagan was President: the party of great ideas, smaller government. The party of less regulation, lower taxes, a strong military, and we kind of moved to becoming the party of just one individual, and that's not smart. Nobody's that good," said Salmon.
Karrin Taylor Robson, who lost to Lake in GOP gubernatorial primary, said she believes the Republican policies are good, but the politics are not.
"The Republican Party in Arizona has been an unmitigated disaster, and the receipt, they say, are in we just suffered loss after loss after loss," said Taylor Robson. "We're gonna need to rebuild the party from the ground up if we ever expect to win again."
Robson is optimistic that change will come.
"I'm very hopeful for the future," said Taylor Robson. "I'm hoping we can bring people together and continue to move positively down the road."
We also reached out to the current Arizona Republican Party Chair, Kelli Ward, but she has yet to respond.