Kelli Ward
Kelli Ward | |
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Chair of the Arizona Republican Party
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In office January 26, 2019 – present | |
Preceded by | Jonathon Lines |
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State Senator from Arizona's 5th District
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In office January 14, 2013 – December 15, 2015 | |
Preceded by | Ron Gould |
Succeeded by | Sue Donahue |
Born | January 25, 1969 Fairmont, West Virginia |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse(s) | Michael Ward |
Children | 3 |
Alma mater | Duke University West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine A.T Still University |
Kelli M. Ward (born January 25, 1969, age 55) is a family medicine doctor[1] and osteopathic specialist[2] serving as the current chair of the Arizona Republican Party. She was previously a state senator for Arizona's 5th district, serving from 2013 to 2015. Ward later unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Senate two times, failing to unseat RINO John McCain in 2016 and having lost to Martha McSally in the Republican primary for the 2018 U.S. Senate election in Arizona.
Contents
Medical career
Ward, a family doctor, has practiced medicine for over twenty years.[1] She has worked in several emergency departments in Arizona municipalities Lake Havasu City and Kingman, even while serving in the Arizona legislature.[3]
Senate runs
2016 U.S. Senate election in Arizona
Ward ran for United States Senate in 2016 to attempt unseating RINO John McCain in the Republican primary. Despite an attempt led by the liberal neocon Bill Kristol to energize McCain as an independent candidate for U.S. president to run against Donald Trump,[4] something that lead to a surge in Ward's campaign fundraising, she still ended up losing to the then-incumbent senator by a margin of just under 12% in the primary held on August 30, 2016.[5]
2018 U.S. Senate election in Arizona
- See main article: United States Senate election in Arizona, 2018
Ward ran again for U.S. Senate in 2018 to fill the seat vacated by RINO Jeff Flake. However, despite receiving the endorsements of the strongly conservative wing of the Republican party,[6][7] Ward lost the primary to then-establishmentarian Martha McSally due to abandonment by the RINO-led GOP establishment that favored McSally, with an attack ad by Mitch McConnell's Senate Leadership Fund super PAC accusing Ward of promoting the chemtrails conspiracy theory.[8] McSally, despite now being consistently conservative, was then opposed to Donald Trump until right before the general election; abandonment by the conservative wing of the Republican party, ties with the obstructionist establishment, and further abandonment by many skeptical Arizona voters in the blue wave 2018 midterm elections cycle led to McSally's defeat in the general election to the radical, self-described "moderate" Kyrsten Sinema.[9]
Political views
According to On the Issues, Ward is strongly conservative.[10] However, before she served in the Arizona state legislature, Ward held a "pro-choice" view on abortion,[11] though her views became much more pro-life upon entering political office.
See also
- Martha McSally, incumbent junior senator from Arizona
- Joe Arpaio, former sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 About Dr. Kelli M. Ward, DO
- ↑ Dr. Kelli Ward, DO
- ↑ About Dr. Kelli Ward
- ↑ McCain Primary Challenger Dr. Kelli Ward Trolls #NeverTrump’s Bill Kristol with Thank You Card
- ↑ United States Senate election in Arizona, 2016
- ↑ Rand Paul endorses Arizona's Kelli Ward
- ↑ Steve King Throws His Support Behind Arizona’s Kelli Ward
- ↑ McConnell super PAC rushes to attack Kelli Ward in Arizona
- ↑ United States Senate election in Arizona, 2018
- ↑ Kelli Ward on the Issues
- ↑ ‘Pro-Life’ Republican Running Against McCain Was Not Always Tough on Abortion