Column: Arizona shows us the messy, winding path out of Trumpism

It’s been a couple of bruising election cycles in Arizona. That’s what happens when a red state turns purple. Let’s hope that now, healing can begin.

This week the Democratic Gov.-elect Katie Hobbs and Maricopa County both urged a judge to sanction the defeated Republican gubernatorial candidate, Kari Lake, over her “unfounded attacks” against elections officials. Much like the former president, Lake wanted the courts to give her what voters did not: a victory. And much like the former president, she was rebuked, when a judge rejected accusations of fraud in the election and stood by the outcome, in which Arizonans chose Hobbs by 17,000 votes. Now the county is seeking $25,050 from Lake to cover its attorneys’ fees. Hobbs is asking for $550,210.

I doubt this is what Lake meant a week ago when she tweeted: “Buckle up, America. This is far from over.”

Opinion Columnist

LZ Granderson

LZ Granderson writes about culture, politics, sports and navigating life in America.

Read more from LZ Granderson

Let’s hope this finally marks the end of the 2022 midterm elections, which were drawn out long enough by the Senate runoff in Georgia. If nothing else, this move by Hobbs highlights a path to hold election deniers accountable for tying up the courts with frivolous lawsuits.

It’s a subject the Arizona native knows well. As secretary of state during the 2020 general election, Hobbs became a political target of the former president and saw firsthand the tax dollars being wasted on recounts because of his unfounded attacks.

It is unfair to characterize the ascension of Hobbs — an elected official in the state since 2010 — as simply a byproduct of Trumpism, but there is no question Hobbs’ handling of Trumpism played a significant role in her becoming the first Democratic governor of the Grand Canyon State since Janet Napolitano won reelection in 2006.

Which only makes me wonder how the new governor will fare after Trumpism.

At nearly 35%, a plurality of voters in Arizona are registered Republicans, but at 34%, independents do not trail by much. Democrats are third (31%), which is one of the reasons Sen. Kyrsten Sinema left the party. Like her “personal hero” the late Sen. John McCain, Sinema fancies herself a maverick. However, unlike McCain, her unpredictable moves in Washington have made Sinema unpopular at home, a reflection of toxic tribalism and her political miscalculations.

Which brings me back to Hobbs, who managed to win the state’s highest office despite being dogged by allegations of racism stemming from the 2015 firing of Talonya Adams, a Black woman who was working for the state Senate when Hobbs led the chamber’s Democrats. Adams said she’d been unfairly discriminated against after complaining about pay disparity between herself and white male colleagues. She won in court twice, and the case was repeatedly brought up by Lake during the campaign this year. Hobbs apologized for her handling of the situation, but it wasn’t well received by all.

Art Hamilton, who led Democrats in the state house for 18 years, was one of six Black leaders to sign a letter criticizing Hobbs. Last year he told the Arizona Republic: “I find it disturbing that there is this notion among Democrats that they have an obligation to vote for her because the bogeyman on the other side is worse. I don’t accept that. You cannot decide that the best way to get someone elected is to emulate the worst characteristics of your opponent.”

Ouch.

To counter, more than 40 prominent Black Arizonans — including elected officials and ministers — signed a letter showing support for Hobbs. It read in part: “During the last election season she proved her willingness and courage to defend the Constitution of our democracy, by standing up for what is decent, in order, and lawful — all while she, her children, and her husband were enduring constant attacks and threats of physical harm.”

In short, she stood up to Trumpism, which especially in light of the findings from the Jan. 6 committee, was no easy task. But if the dismissal of Lake’s attempt to overturn the election signals the end of the Trump threat, what will hold together the coalition that got her into office?

Napolitano did it with a sound economic policy and a push for tourism and education. But her administration also featured some decisions that might not go over well in today’s liberal echo chamber. For example, Napolitano was among the first governors in the country to deploy the National Guard at the border in response to a surge in migrant crossings and called on the federal government to enforce immigration laws and curtail illegal activity.

Sound familiar?

The same pressures that led Napolitano to that position are coming to bear on Hobbs now. Other Democratic governors of border states may be able to get away with appearing weak on immigration, but in Arizona, Hobbs does not have that luxury. Her next Republican opponents will most likely be hanging their hats on a more traditional Republican platform — including issues like immigration and government spending — not on Trumpist election denial. But Hobbs can’t be too right-leaning, lest she risk becoming her state’s next Sinema.

Rallying a coalition to beat President Trump’s movement wasn’t easy, but Hobbs did it. Now that his threat is all but vanquished, her next test is keeping her coalition together without him.