As Arizona GOP picks new leader, 2 primary candidates offer advice on moving forward

As Arizona Republicans are set to vote for a new leader Saturday, two candidates who ran in the GOP's August primary hope the election changes the party's direction following big losses in November.

One is Lacy Cooper, a former Republican candidate for attorney general. Now an attorney in private practice, the former border security section chief for the U.S. Attorney's Office under Trump said she wants her old party back, with a return to conservative principles and less of a focus on election denialism.

Another Republican who hopes to see the party forge a new path is former state party chairman and former Congressman Matt Salmon, who ran in the primary for Arizona governor but announced he was dropping out of that race shortly before early voting started.

Cooper and Salmon both said they believe the party's current trajectory is unsustainable. But while prospects for GOP unification may appear grim, they said they cannot imagine leaving it.

"The Republican Party in Arizona has been co-opted by a group of people who have made election integrity their No. 1 and really sole issue," she told The Arizona Republic. "I thought it would sort of die out over time as people returned to the conservative principles. I was wrong."

She said the values the Republican Party was founded are getting ignored, such as limited government, low taxes, and the conservative constructionist judicial philosophy.

Cooper lost in a six-person primary. Abe Hamadeh, the winner, would go on lose to Democrat Kris Mayes by 280 votes in the general. He is challenging the election results and his success in the primary demonstrates the ascent of election integrity as the primary issue of the state's GOP.

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Salmon also wants the party to focus on conservative principles.

"The idea of whether or not you're a valid Republican today, or a purist Republican, has nothing to do with the ideas that you believe or espouse, or the policies that you advocate for. It has everything to do with: 'Are you going to buy into my crazy conspiracy?'" Salmon said.

He goes further than Cooper in attributing the change in the party to election denialism. He blames Trump and does not believe that the Republican Party in Arizona can move forward if the former president continues to play a central role.

"The (GOP) is not really even about ideas more. It's not about smaller government or, you know, being pro-life and pro-Second Amendment. It's all about fealty to Trump, and buying into his anger and vitriol," Salmon said. "The Republican Party is not going to take corrective action until we move beyond Trump."

Unsure who they're for, but know who they're against

There are six candidates running to replace outgoing party chair Kelli Ward.

The candidates are: Patriot Party leader Steve Daniels; Former Arizona Treasurer Jeff DeWit, who also was CFO of the Trump 2016 campaign, and CEO of both the Trump 2016 and 2020 campaigns; Dan Farley, Arizona Tea Party President and a legislative district chairman; Vera Gebran, former Republican candidate for the Arizona House who lost in the primary; State Chairwoman of Republican National Hispanic Assembly Lori Ann Martinez and current current AZ GOP Treasurer Sheila K. Muehling.

When asked if she was happy with the slate of candidates, Cooper responded: "There are too many question marks for me."

However, Cooper has ruled out Muehling, who is in current leadership, because, "We've lost too many elections in a row and it is time for a change." She also opposes Daniels, whom she believes "embodies" the election denialist wing of the Arizona GOP.

Salmon said he is "torn" about which candidate to support for but also has ruled out Daniels. He said has spoken to some candidates who have given him assurances about the direction they want to take the party and their commitment to neutrality.

He likens the response of the state Republican party losing elections to high school sports.

"You'd have people on a team when you lose a key game and they blame everything on the ref and they wouldn't want to focus on the things that we did wrong ... . That's what these folks are doing. They're blaming external forces, making every excuse but the real one for why we lost," Salmon said.

"When you're in denial of why you really lost, then you can't fix the problem ever."

Fighting for 'heart and soul' of party

Cooper believes the divide between the sides is too wide to coalesce.

"You either are going to pick one side or the other, or you're going to try to unite everybody under a big tent, which I think is going to be unsuccessful," she said. "I think there is a very real possibility that the party will split."

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Still, Cooper said she cannot imagine leaving the GOP, even if the current party continues on its current trajectory.

"It's so important to me that the party was founded under Lincoln and he fought to save our country. I'm not ready to give up that quite yet," she said.

Salmon also plans on sticking with the GOP.

"I think the thing to do right now is to keep fighting for the heart and soul of the Republican Party. "

Tara Kavaler is a politics reporter at The Arizona Republic. She can be reached by email at tara.kavaler@arizonarepublic.com or on Twitter @kavalertara.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Lacy Cooper, Matt Salmon say Arizona Republicans need new direction