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A4 U.S. NEWS
Thursday 26 april 2018

GOP unsettled by narrow win

in U.S. House race in Arizona

By BOB CHRISTIE and ANITA House seat they would who resigned in December
SNOW have never considered amid sexual misconduct
Associated Press endangered in any other allegations. A former aide
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — It year. told The Associated Press
took a big money push Tuesday’s narrow victory that he pressed her to carry
from the Republican Party, by Republican Debbie his child as a surrogate and
tweets by the president Lesko over a Democratic offered her $5 million.
and the support of the political newcomer sends The district sprawls across
Republican U.S. Congressional candidate Debbie Lesko, right, state’s current and former a big message to Republi- western Phoenix suburbs,
celebrates her win with former Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer at her governors, but the GOP cans nationwide: Even the covering some of the most
home, Tuesday, April 24, 2018, in Peoria, Ariz. held onto an Arizona U.S. reddest of districts in a red conservative areas of the
Associated Press state can be in play this red state, including the re-
year. Returns showed Lesko tirement community of Sun
winning by about 5 per- City.
centage points in Arizona’s At a victory party in her
8th Congressional District Glendale neighborhood,
where Donald Trump won Lesko greeted supporters
by 21 percentage points. and looked back in won-
“Debbie will do a Great der.
Job!” the president tweet- “I’ve really come a long
ed Wednesday. way and this is really quite
The former state senator de- overwhelming, it’s very sur-
feated Hiral Tipirneni, a for- real,” she said. “Twenty-five
mer emergency room phy- years ago I left an abu-
sician who had hoped to sive husband and I sure as
replicate surprising Demo- heck never would have
cratic wins in Pennsylvania, dreamt in a million years
Alabama and other states that I would be running for
in a year where opposition Congress to be a congress-
to President Trump’s poli- woman.”
cies have boosted the par- Brewer, who backed Les-
ty’s chances in Republican ko and was at her victory
strongholds. party, also warned that
Republican political con- Republicans need to make
sultant Chuck Coughlin changes if they want to
called Tuesday’s special hold the district and other
election margin “not good” seats in November elec-
for national Republicans tions.
looking at their chances in Tipirneni worked the district
November. hard, making inroads rarely
“They should clean house seen in an area that hadn’t
in this election,” said elected a Democrat since
Coughlin, longtime adviser the early 1980s. She was
to former Arizona Gov. Jan seen as a fresh Democratic
Brewer. “There’s a drag on face with relatively moder-
the midterms for Republi- ate views that could get
can candidates that’s be- support in the district. Mak-
ing created by the nation- ing a push for older voters,
al narrative. And it would she had said Lesko would
be very hard to buck that vote to go after entitle-
trend if you’re in swing dis- ment programs like Social
tricts, much less close dis- Security and Medicaid to
tricts, if you can’t change pay for tax cuts that mainly
that narrative between benefit the wealthy. She’s
now and November.” pushed a plan to allow
Lesko replaces former Rep. some people to buy into
Trent Franks, a Republican Medicare.q