In 2023, the Arizona Republican Party purchased property in Phoenix that it planned to use as its headquarters. The acquisition was a big deal in conservative Arizona politics.
But on Saturday, March 23, according to Axios, the Arizona GOP decided to sell the third-floor office space only nine months after acquiring it.
Gina Swoboda, who chairs the Arizona GOP, told Axios that the space presented financial and logistical problems that could have been bad for Republicans in an election year.
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Axios' Jeremy Duda explains, "The AZGOP has been plagued by dysfunction and poor fundraising over the past few years, just as it attempts to fight back against recent Democratic political gains…. Currently, the party is paying about $11,300 monthly in HOA fees for the space. And because people can't get to the third-floor space without a badge, it's inaccessible to volunteers and others."
Those problems, according to Duda, have made it difficult for Arizona Republicans "to help campaigns and carry out get-out-the-vote activities."
Arizona will see some major statewide races in 2024 — not only the presidential race, but also, a U.S. Senate battle that is likely to find liberal Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego and far-right MAGA Republican and conspiracy theorist Kari Lake battling for the Senate seat presently held by centrist Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Arizona). A former Democrat turned independent, Sinema has decided not to seek election.
According to Duda, the Arizona GOP purchased the Phoenix space for $1.9 million in June 2023.
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In recent years, Arizona has seen plenty of infighting among Republicans, with traditional conservatives like GOP activist Meghan McCain openly expressing their disdain for far-right MAGA figures such as Lake.
The Associated Press, in October 2023, noted, "In Arizona, insurgent Republicans who castigated the more moderate members of their own party — who had once supported the late Sen. John McCain — won nominations for governor, U.S. Senate, secretary of state and attorney general. All of them lost to Democrats last November."
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Read Axios' full report at this link.
