Kari Lake, a former Republican gubernatorial candidate, has filed a lawsuit saying that enough election irregularities occurred in November of last year to cost her a victory against then-Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, who has since been elected governor of Arizona. A crucial ruling on Lake’s complaint has finally been issued by an Arizona state appeals court.

Following the rejection of her appeal by the state Supreme Court earlier this month, the Arizona Court of Appeals ordered that the matter must first be considered by lower courts before being heard by the state Supreme Court, and has now agreed to accelerate that hearing.

The court issued a short decision agreeing that Lake’s claims should be considered as a “special action petition.” According to rumors, a court date has been set for March.

During the protracted lawsuit in which Lake is involved, her campaign has replied to allegations that she is considering running for the US Senate seat now held by Kyrsten Sinema, who recently abandoned her party and proclaimed herself an independent candidate.

CNN political reporter Kate Sullivan posted on Twitter, “I’m told Kari Lake is considering running for the US Senate seat held by Kyrsten Sinema in 2024,”

According to polls, the firebrand Republican would defeat both the incumbent Independent Senator Kyrsten Sinema and the Democratic candidate Ruben Gallego.

“The survey, released January 11 by the website Blueprint Polling, imagined a scenario in which Sinema, a former Democrat turned independent who’s held her Senate seat since 2019, runs for reelection against Lake and Gallego, a Democrat who represents the state’s 3rd Congressional District. Lake, who rumors say is considering running for the seat but has not confirmed this, polled at 36 percent, according to Blueprint, well ahead of the two rivals. Gallego trailed closely with 32 percent, while Sinema ran a distant third with 14 percent,” Deseret News reported.

According to the study, one in every six voters interviewed said they were unsure in a three-way contest, which might help Senator Sinema preserve her seat.

Senator Sinema, who defected from the Democratic Party last month, has gained support from both Republican and Democratic voters, and a separate poll indicates that she has the best chance of remaining in the Senate, stating that it “may be for the Republican party to nominate a candidate so flawed that moderate and conservative voters would abandon that person for the Independent Sinema.”

Conservative Brief reports:

Sinema formally left the Democratic Party in December and switched to the Independent Party. Her action further erodes the Democrats’ already precarious grip on the upper chamber. Prior to her declaration, Democrats held a 51-50 Senate majority.

Sinema attacked “partisanship” and its grasp on both major parties in a guest editorial for the Arizona Republic. Sinema, who faces re-election in 2024, has stated that she would continue to caucus with Democrats.

“Everyday Americans are increasingly left behind by national parties’ rigid partisanship, which has hardened in recent years,” Sinema wrote. “Pressures in both parties pull leaders to the edges, allowing the loudest, most extreme voices to determine their respective parties’ priorities and expecting the rest of us to fall in line. In catering to the fringes, neither party has demonstrated much tolerance for diversity of thought,” she wrote. “Bipartisan compromise is seen as a rarely acceptable last resort, rather than the best way to achieve lasting progress. Payback against the opposition party has replaced thoughtful legislating.”

“There’s a disconnect between what everyday Americans want and deserve from our politics, and what political parties are offering. I am privileged to represent Arizonans of all backgrounds and beliefs in the U.S. Senate and am honored to travel to every corner of our state, listening to your concerns and ideas. While Arizonans don’t all agree on the issues, we are united in our values of hard work, common sense, and independence,” Sinema said.

Over the past four years, I’ve worked proudly with other Senators in both parties and forged consensus on successful laws helping everyday Arizonans build better lives for themselves and their families. 2/3

— Kyrsten Sinema (@kyrstensinema) December 9, 2022

“I promised I would never bend to party pressure, and I would stay focused on solving problems and getting things done for everyday Arizonans. Americans are more united than the national parties would have us believe. We’ve shown that a diverse democracy can still function effectively. Arizonans – including many registered as Democrats or Republicans – are eager for leaders who focus on common-sense solutions rather than party doctrine. But if the loudest, most extreme voices continue to drive each party toward the fringes – and if party leaders stay more focused on energizing their bases than delivering for all Americans – these kinds of lasting legislative successes will become rarer,” she wrote.

“When politicians are more focused on denying the opposition party a victory than they are on improving Americans’ lives, the people who lose are everyday Americans. That’s why I have joined the growing numbers of Arizonans who reject party politics by declaring my independence from the broken partisan system in Washington. I registered as an Arizona independent,” she declared.