PHOENIX — Arizona voters took to the polls Tuesday for the primary election.
Kari Lake won the US Senate primary over Mark Lamb and several other races were too close to call Tuesday night.
Arizona is already expected to play a critical role in the White House race as it did in 2020, but Tuesday’s state primaries will set the stage for competitive contests that could determine control of the closely divided U.S. Senate, U.S. House and both chambers of the state legislature.
Maricopa County saw a 22.93% voter turnout. Out of more than 2.4 million registered voters, a little more than 554,000 cast a ballot.
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: Resultados de las elecciones primarias en el estado de Arizona
Here are results on some of the most-watched races
Kari Lake took the Republican primary for the US Senate race.
When she took the stage to accept the nomination just after 9 p.m., Lake thanked her campaign volunteers, donors and family. She also thanked former President Donald Trump for his endorsement.
"He can't do it alone, it's not about one man, he can't do this alone. He needs backup in Washington DC," Lake said. "And I'm going to be his backup."
Lake also thanked her opponent, who she called a friend, Mark Lamb.
"Every day he goes out there and puts it all on the line, we appreciate you, Mark," Lake said. "I know we both want to save America and I look forward to working with you."
Lamb spoke with 12News and said he was still waiting for districts to come in before conceding the race.
Lake will face Ruben Gallego in November. Gallego didn't have any primary challengers for his party's nomination. 12News' Joe Dana spoke to Gallego after Lake won her primary. Here's what he had to say:
Justin Heap is ahead by about 20,400 votes Wednesday morning in the Republican primary for Maricopa County recorder. The Associated Press called the race for Heap.
As of 6 a.m., the unofficial results show Stephen Richer with 113,090 votes, Justin Heap with 133,561 votes and Don Hiatt with 68,563 votes.
Richer, who is running for a second term as the county recorder, has faced criticism from members of his own party for dispelling allegations of election fraud in Arizona.
The Associated Press called the race in favor of current Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell with 57.7% of the vote to Gina Godbehere's 42.3%.
Mitchell released the following statement Wednesday morning:
"I am grateful to the voters of Maricopa County for demonstrating their trust in me again for this important role of protecting our community. As we head into the General Election, I am proud to stand on my record as a career prosecutor and victims advocate. Increasingly, we are seeing a push to turn a blind eye on crime, and it’s been a disaster in major cities all across the country. I will not allow that to happen in Maricopa County. Law enforcement is not and should not be a partisan issue, and that’s why I’ll keep working with anyone to do what’s right for our county. We must preserve the safety of our residents, the security of our neighborhoods and the quality of life Arizonans expect. I promise to continue doing my job, delivering results and earning the trust of voters no matter whether they are Republican, Democrat or Independent."
The Associated Press has called the Republican primary race for Maricopa County sheriff in favor of Jerry Sheridan with a comfortable lead of about 75,000 votes.
As of Wednesday morning, the unofficial election results show Jerry Sheridan having 164,980 votes, Frank Milstead having 89,832 votes and Mike Crawford having 67,264 votes.
Milstead is the former director of the Arizona Department of Public Safety, Sheridan is the former chief deputy of the sheriff's office, and Crawford is a former Glendale police officer.
Tyler Andrew Kamp beat Russ Skinner, the current Maricopa County Sheriff in the Democratic primary election, according to the Associated Press. Kamp had 121,891 votes to Skinner's 100,834.
As of Wednesday morning, the unofficial results show Amish Shah with 15,159 votes, Andrei Cherny with 13,492 votes, Marlene Galán-Woods with 13,113 votes, Andrew Horne with 7,763 votes, Conor O'Callaghan with 11,644 votes and Kurt Kroemer with 1,942 votes.
Shah is a former state lawmaker, Cherny was the 2010 state treasurer nominee, Galán-Woods is an ex-local news anchor, Horne is an orthodontist, O'Callaghan is an investment banker and Kroemer has been a regional CEO for the American Red Cross.
Yassamin Ansari is ahead by about 1,100 votes in the Democratic primary to fill Ruben Gallego's seat in Congress.
As of Wednesday morning, the state's unofficial election results show Yassamin Ansari with 15,960 votes, Raquel Terán with 14,775 votes and Duane Wooten with 3,848 votes.
Ansari is a former member of the Phoenix City Council. Terán served in the Arizona Legislature and as chair of the Arizona Democratic Party. Wooten is a long-time medical professional.
CD3 is a reliably blue district that encompasses central Phoenix and parts of the West Valley. The Democrat who wins the nomination will have a major advantage over the Republican candidate in the general election.
This region has been represented by Democrat Ruben Gallego since 2015. Gallego is running this election year for Arizona's open seat in the U.S. Senate.
Abraham Hamadeh was ahead by 3,900 votes in the crowded Republican primary in Arizona's 8th Congressional District.
As of 6:30 a.m., the unofficial election results show Abe Hamadeh with 25,938 votes, Blake Masters with 22,021 votes, Ben Toma with 18,511 votes, Trent Franks with 14,432 votes and Anthony Kern with 4,137 votes.
Masters and Hamadeh both lost statewide races to Democrats in 2022. Toma and Kern are both currently serving as members of the Arizona Legislature.
Franks had represented Arizona in Congress until his resignation in 2017 after two aides accused Franks of sexually harassing them by asking them to carry a child through surrogacy.
CD8 is a reliably red district encompassing the suburban neighborhoods north and west of Phoenix. The district is currently represented by Republican Debbie Lesko, who chose not to seek re-election this year.
The Associated Press has called the primary in favor of incumbent Wendy Rogers.
For a full list of election results, click here.
Decision 2024
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How big is Maricopa County?
Maricopa County is the United States’ 4th largest county in terms of population with 4,485,414 people, according to the 2020 Census.
The county contains around 63% of Arizona’s population and is 9,224 square miles. That makes the county larger than seven U.S. states (Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire).
One of the largest park systems in the nation is also located in Maricopa County. The county has an estimated 120,000 acres of open space parks that include hundreds of miles of trails, nature centers and campgrounds.
The county’s seat is located in Phoenix, which is also the state capital and the census-designated 5th most populous city in the United States.
The county was named after the Maricopa, or Piipaash, Native American Tribe.
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