Abe Hamadeh first to announce bid for Rep. Debbie Lesko's seat. Blake Masters among possibilities

At least two political camps could turn the West Valley into a battleground for Republicans seeking to control a congressional district where the August primary could determine who holds a seat for years to come.

U.S. Rep. Debbie Lesko's surprise retirement announcement on Tuesday could pit the 2022 Republican Senate nominee, Blake Masters, and the fiscally conservative Club for Growth against the 2022 Arizona attorney general nominee, Abe Hamadeh, with support from Kari Lake and — perhaps — former President Donald Trump.

Hamadeh quickly became the first Republican to announce a candidacy in Arizona's 8th Congressional District.

"Our country is in desperate need of courageous fighters, and that’s why I’m proud to announce I’m running for Congress in Arizona’s 8th District," Hamadeh wrote on the social-media platform X at 5:06 p.m. Tuesday. "President Trump is under attack. He needs back up — and I’m ready to help him Make America Great Again."

Not long after Lesko announced her decision not to seek another term, the president of the Club for Growth reached out to Masters to urge him to run, according to reporting from Politico. The Club for Growth's political arm spent millions trying to help Masters win last year in a race where he struggled to find financial support against U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.

Masters, who lives in Tucson, could not be reached Tuesday for comment.

Lake, who formally entered the U.S. Senate race last week, had Hamedeh introduce her at the Scottsdale event. Hamadeh has been a Lake ally in their long-standing baseless claims of election mismanagement in 2022.

What Lake said: Kari Lake paints her Senate rivals as President Joe Biden's enablers

Lake, Masters and Hamadeh all ran with Trump's endorsement last year, and Trump gave Lake his swift endorsement last week after he reportedly told Masters that Lake would defeat him if they both ran for the Senate. Hamadeh's support for Lake, and presumed good standing with Trump, could give him an edge in a Republican primary.

Hamadeh had been weighing a run for Maricopa County attorney, but Lesko's GOP-friendly congressional district suddenly appeals to many West Valley Republicans.

Lesko won the stampede into that district in 2018, when she won a special election following U.S. Rep. Trent Franks' resignation under pressure. Political observers who have seen the pull of a safe seat before immediately suggested a handful of other instant contenders who might enter the Republican primary.

They include state House Speaker Ben Toma, R-Peoria; state Treasurer Kimberly Yee; former congressional candidate Elijah Norton; and state Rep. Steve Montenegro, R-Litchfield Park.

Other GOP members of the state Legislature from the West Valley could also weigh a congressional run in an area of Arizona that hasn't elected a Democrat to Congress since Rep. Bob Stump in 1980. Stump switched parties not long after his reelection that cycle in a nod to the conservatism that still prevails there.

Toma can point to his work to broaden Arizona's Empowerment Scholarship Accounts, the voucher law that provides state funding in education to parents for children in nonpublic schools. He has a record of supporting corporate tax cuts and other tax reductions that likely appeal to the GOP electorate. Toma could find running for the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors more palatable.

Yee was the top vote-getter in the 2022 election and ran for governor before staying in her current job as treasurer. It suggests Yee could be restive and look to Congress as a way to move up the political ladder. But she would have to resign her state office for a race where big money and the biggest endorsement could pose daunting hurdles.

Bowing out: Rep. Debbie Lesko won't seek reelection

Norton, who lost the Republican nomination to incumbent U.S. Rep. David Schweikert, R-Ariz., last year is independently wealthy and politically active. He ran as someone in line with Trump's agenda and spent a small fortune trying to oust Schweikert, suggesting a determination that could make him formidable.

Montenegro ran for the open seat in 2018, but his candidacy fizzled amid news of his racy text messages with a legislative staffer. The seat only became open after a former staffer for Franks accused him of pressing her to be a surrogate mother for his child.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Masters, Hamadeh seen as Republican contenders for Lesko's seat