Thursday, Arizona Republican Kari Lake was sighted with former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, sparking suspicions that she might be picked as Trump’s running mate in 2024.
Lake stated that she was in Florida to investigate the possibility of voting disenfranchisement in the Arizona governor’s election, which has been called by her opponent, Democrat Katie Hobbs. Lake has not surrendered the race as of yet.
On Monday, the Associated Press declared Hobbs the winner of the election. According to 270towin, it was a tight race between Lake and Hobbs, with Lake receiving 49.67 percent of the vote and Hobbs receiving 50.33 percent.
However, in light of the voting machine concerns that surfaced in Maricopa County on Election Day, Lake stated that she will investigate the legal issues surrounding voting, as reported by the AP.
The Arizona Republic claimed that between 20 and 30 percent of polling places in Maricopa County, Arizona’s most populous county, experienced issues with their vote-tallying equipment on November 8.
Lake has been screaming about this issue, and on Thursday, she posted a video in which she claimed that Arizona voters were disenfranchised.
“Our election officials failed us miserably,” Lake said.
“Rest assured, I have assembled the best and brightest legal team, and we are exploring every avenue to correct the many wrongs that have been done this past week. I’m doing everything in my power to right these wrongs,” she added.
Arizona, we are still in the fight. pic.twitter.com/ytaGvqG5J0
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) November 17, 2022
The Wall Street Journal said that Lake came to Mar-a-Lago on Thursday to meet with Trump, who backed her and has been a staunch ally throughout the governor’s race.
In light of Trump’s announcement on Tuesday that he will run for president again in 2024, Lake’s visit to Trump drew some attention away from the Arizona governor race, and speculation began to circulate about a possible 2024 partnership between Trump and Lake.
The Washington Post reported that when Lake entered a lunch hosted by America First Policy Institute at Mar-a-Lago, she received a standing ovation.
Despite Lake’s assertion that she will continue to run for office in Arizona, the buzz generated by the sight of Trump and Lake together has led many to believe that her political future may take a different path.
“Lake was frequently discussed as a potential vice-presidential pick for Trump, although she maintained on the campaign trail that she intended to serve a full term as governor if elected. Now that she’s been defeated for state office, her political path is less clear,” the Post noted.
On Twitter, Trump and GOP fans were delighted to see photos of Trump and Lake.
One Twitter user posted a picture of Trump and Lake together with the caption, “Trump, Kari Lake, Bolsonaro – let’s go.”
Trump, Kari Lake, Bolsonaro – let’s go pic.twitter.com/1q5VHPApoC
— Kingsley Cortes (@KingsleyCortes) November 18, 2022
“@KariLake if worse comes to worse, Kari Lake will be available to campaign full-time for Vice President of the United States 2024,” another user posted on Thursday.
@KariLake if worse comes to worse, Kari Lake will be available to campaign full-time for Vice President of the United States 2024.
— KAT (@KatFalk) November 17, 2022
Trump has not spoken on a potential running partner.
Meanwhile, Lake is engaged in combat in Arizona.