Democrat Aaron Lieberman ends bid for Arizona governor; Hobbs, López remain in race

Aaron Lieberman, the former state representative who resigned his seat to run for the Democratic nomination for governor of Arizona, announced Friday he was suspending his campaign.

Lieberman thanked his supporters in a statement and said he remained sure he has the skills and experience to improve Arizona from its helm as governor.

"While that confidence remains, it is clear to me that there’s just not a realistic path forward in this race this year, and I owe it to all the people who have so generously supported our campaign to be honest with them about what the path ahead would look like," the statement reads.

"Electing a Democratic governor and ensuring that Kari Lake gets nowhere near the Governor’s Office will be a top priority of mine over the next few months. For every person who supported this campaign, in so many different ways, I will be forever grateful.”

Lake, a former Fox 10 news anchor, is a leading Republican candidate who believes the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump.

Lieberman ran as a problem-solver who would put aside the state's divisive political climate and work across the aisle to tackle the state's pressing issues, just as he said he did when he served in the Legislature.

Twice elected to the state House of Representatives, Lieberman resigned his seat 11 months ago to launch his campaign for the state's top office. Voters first chose him in 2018 to represent Legislative District 28, representing Paradise Valley and parts of north-central Phoenix, ousting Republican Rep. Maria Syms.

In his bid for governor, Lieberman touted his background in education, an issue that ranks of top importance to Arizonans. Lieberman worked briefly as a Head Start teacher before founding Jumpstart, a nonprofit organization that provides programs for children in preschool, and later leading Acelero Learning, a national for-profit Head Start program.

Lieberman entered the race for governor last June, knowing he’d face two formidable challengers who already had announced their campaigns. Those candidates, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs and former Nogales mayor Marco López, remain in the race.

Hobbs, a Democrat who served several terms in the Legislature before being elected Secretary of State in 2018, has built a campaign — and a regular schedule of national, profile-raising news appearances — defending the state’s 2020 election.

López, the first person of either party to formally announce he’d seek the governorship, brings a long history in Arizona Democratic politics, which he first entered as mayor of Nogales in his early 20s. He went on to serve in the Napolitano and Obama administrations, handling the state’s business relations with Mexico and immigration enforcement, respectively.

López commended Lieberman's run in a statement Friday, while continuing a veiled line of attack on Hobbs. Both López and Lieberman have criticized her for missing campaign events in recent weeks.

"I thank Aaron for sharing his story and his vision for this state, and showing up for Democrats across Arizona at the various events we’ve attended together," López said. "Aaron has been adamant that we need a governor who puts education and our working families first; one who’s not afraid to speak directly to the voters and speak out against hate and discrimination."

Who is running for governor of Arizona?: These are the major candidates in the race

Lieberman had raised just over $1.4 million for his bid, a large haul compared to past elections but not enough to compete with leading Democratic challenger, Hobbs. Hobbs had raised over $3.6 million for her campaign by the end of March, the last time candidates had to publicly disclose their finances.

At the time, Lieberman had about $750,000 in the bank. A month later he shelled out $500,000 of that for his first television advertisement, titled “Dumpster fire,” and in which Lieberman compared the state’s politics to trash aflame.

In that ad, he targeted Hobbs — who in 2015 participated in the firing of a Black female aide who later won two discrimination verdicts against the state Senate — and Trump-backed Lake as evidence of the need for a stabilizing force in politics.

Arizonans will choose their party's nominee in the primary on Aug. 2, who will face one of five Republican candidates vying for their party's ticket in November. Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, cannot run again because of term limits and leaves office in early January 2023.

In addition to Lake, GOP candidates include the developer and former member of the Board of Regents Karrin Taylor Robson; former congressman Matt Salmon; concrete business owner Scott Neely; and former businesswoman Paola Tulliani Zen.

Reach reporter Stacey Barchenger at stacey.barchenger@arizonarepublic.com or 480-416-5669. Follow her on Twitter @sbarchenger.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Democrat Aaron Lieberman suspends campaign for Arizona governor