Andy Biggs is going to be the Republican standard-bearer for governor in November.
Biggs, backed by an endorsement from President Donald Trump, jumped out to an early — and by all appearances unsurmountable — lead over David Schweikert, getting close to five votes for every one by his nearest competitor.
Scott Neely was picking up less than 8% of the GOP votes, with Ken Miceli at just 5.4%.
"I am deeply honored to be chosen by Arizona Republicans as their nominee to defeat Katie Hobbs in November,'' Biggs said in a prepared statement. "Our goal has always been to unite the Republican Party and we've done that as much as any nominee in recent memory.''
What was supposed to be a four-way race for the right to take on incumbent Katie Hobbs in November quickly became a head-to-head between Biggs and Schweikert, both members of Congress who are giving up their seats.
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Biggs, who has led in polls pretty much the whole campaign, generally ignored his primary foes, focusing his attention on claiming that any of the state's economic woes, including high housing costs, can be laid at the feet of the current governor. He also claimed his prior experience as state Senate president shows he has the ability to work with Democrats.
But he has been dogged by questions of whether he can win in a state that in the last several cycles has elected Democrats for governor, secretary of state, attorney general and even to both seats in the U.S. Senate. Biggs, endorsed by President Donald Trump and backed financially by Turning Point USA, fought certification of Joe Biden's win over Trump in 2020 and has refused to say outright that Biden won the popular vote.
Schweikert, the state's senior member of Congress, seized on these issues, telling GOP voters if they nominate Biggs they are guaranteeing another four years for Hobbs.
Neely, a Mesa businessman, is the lone candidate to seek the office with public funding. He has spent much of it attacking Biggs, including his being one of the few votes in Congress against subpoenaing the Epstein files.
Miceli was pretty much a non-entity in the race except for an appearance in a four-way televised debate.
