Election-denier Kari Lake coming to Milwaukee for Republican debate in support of Trump

As Republican candidates for president descend on Milwaukee on Wednesday, they will be joined by election-denier Kari Lake, but not on stage.

The former Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidate who falsely claims her election loss resulted from election fraud is coming to Milwaukee for the Aug. 23 Republican presidential primary debate, according to a release from her campaign. Her visit comes after a late June appearance at a Milwaukee County Republican County fundraiser in Wauwatosa.

“President Trump is the only candidate that can beat Joe Biden and Save America," Colton Duncan, senior advisor to Kari Lake, said in a statement. "That’s why Kari Lake is dedicated to advancing President Trump’s agenda nationwide and it’s exactly what she plans to do in Milwaukee on Wednesday.”

In order to participate in the debate, candidates for president must attract 40,000 individual donors and meet a polling threshold. Lake is not among the candidates for president, but she has been a supporter of former President Donald Trump, who like Lake falsely claims his 2020 election loss was due to election fraud.

It doesn't seem as if Trump will make it to Milwaukee for the debate, a move that both Republicans and Democrats have criticized him for. Trump, who faces more than 90 felony charges over four criminal indictments, plans to do an interview online with Tucker Carlson, former Fox News host, according to The New York Times.

More: Who has tickets to the Republican debate at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee

Lake, a former television anchor, rose in prominence in the Republican Party during her campaign for governor in 2022, which she lost to Democrat Katie Hobbs.

Lake may be joined in Milwaukee by other prominent Trump supporters, including U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz and U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, according to NBC News.

The debate is the first major event of the 2024 presidential campaign and will prepare local officials for the Republican National Convention, which is scheduled to be in Milwaukee next year.

Fox News anchor and debate co-moderator Bret Baier told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Trump "will be part of the debate" in some form.

"I mean, he's leading in the polls by 10, 20, 30, 40 points, depending on the poll, depending on the state. And, obviously, his legal issues are affecting this race," Baier said. "All these candidates have been asked nonstop about what's happening in courtrooms around the country. So he'll be a part of this debate whether he's there or not."

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Election-denier Kari Lake coming to Milwaukee for Republican debate