Former President Bill Clinton set to headline congressional fundraiser in Tucson

Former President Bill Clinton is set to headline a campaign fundraiser in Tucson for a Phoenix-area congressional candidate.

Clinton will appear Saturday at a $1,000-a-ticket fundraiser for Democrat Andrei Cherny on Saturday, according to an invitation obtained by The Arizona Republic. The precise location of the event was not disclosed.

Cherny at age 21 was hired as a White House speechwriter for Clinton.

Cherny is running in Arizona's 1st Congressional District amid a crowded field of Democrats who hope to emerge from the primary and challenge Rep. David Schweikert, R-Ariz.

Cherny is former chair of the Arizona Democratic Party, and previously ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012, losing the Democratic primary to now-Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz. Clinton endorsed Cherny in the 2012 race, too.

Clinton's past visits to Arizona in at least one instance generated some political intrigue.

Clinton orchestrated an impromptu June 2016 meeting at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport with then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch, whose U.S. Department of Justice at the time was investigating his wife Hillary Clinton's email controversy. Hillary Clinton was then the Democratic Party's presumptive presidential nominee. Clinton had been in town for a fundraiser and a meeting with Latino leaders.

A 2018 report from the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General detailed the awkward interaction. It said Lynch became increasingly uncomfortable as the 20-minute conversation dragged on.

Clinton was scheduled to arrive in Tucson on Friday evening, according to KVOA-TV in Tucson.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Bill Clinton headlines fundraiser for Andrei Cherny in Tucson