Kari Lake vs. Blake Masters for U.S. Senate? Oh, it's on (already)

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Blake Masters will run for the U.S. Senate again.

Of course, we in Arizona have known this for a while.

Since last week, to be precise. That’s when Kari Lake publicly attacked him.

Lake and Blake could become Lake vs. Blake

You may recall that Lake and Masters were a team on the campaign trail in 2022 — part of Trump’s America First slate.

They rallied together. They rode buses, emblazoned with their faces, together.

Then they and the rest of the Trump slate lost together.

Now, suddenly, Lake and Blake are about to become Lake vs. Blake.

Lake has made no secret of the fact that she’s running for the Senate, though she’ll likely tease it for a few more weeks even if Masters jumps in. She seems to think the nomination is hers for the taking, and she’s probably right.

There’s a reason why no traditional conservative has gotten into this race, given the mood of the Republican base.

Kari Lake brought out the knives last week

Masters, meanwhile, has mostly laid low since his poor performance in 2022. Not even billionaire Peter Thiel’s millions could save him from himself in that disastrous campaign.

The first real indication that he’s going to make another run for it came a few weeks ago, when Lake’s people began quietly sharpening the knives.

Politicos tell me Lake’s team has been whispering that Masters isn’t a team player, that he’s just in it for himself and not properly shouting to the heavens about election fraud.

Then last week, Lake turned up the volume.

On Aug. 25, Masters announced on social media that he’d be joining Andrew Jackson, a Gilbert Republican who is running for the Arizona House, for a Sunday evening conversation on X, formerly Twitter, entitled “Blake Masters and Praying for America and Arizona.”

Kari Lake was not amused.

“It’s great to have you back, Blake!” her “war room” account posted, giving you the impression that really, his re-emergence was anything but great. “We hope your next interview is with someone who has not spent the last 9 months smearing Kari.”

Then her attacks cranked up the volume

Then came Lake, with a proper scold of her soon-to-be Senate rival.

“I hope you bring up election fraud, and Election crime,” she posted. “You’ve been quite silent. And ‘Dr’ Andrew doesn’t think it exists.”

At the end of her post, she tossed in a trio of crickets, to drive home her displeasure..

Then she cranked up the volume.

“The question is what has ‘Dr.’ Jackson and Blake done to root out voter fraud, or simply show support those of us who are pushing for election reform??” she asked in yet another post. “Answer? Nothing.”

Possibly … because Lake hasn’t produced anything close to evidence in her two losing trials challenging the election?

The strongest signal: That Sen. Sinema will run next year

Or because Masters and Johnson — along with anyone who knows anything about political campaigns in Arizona — realize it’s a losing a message in a general election?

Could a normal Republican still win?

There’s a reason why none of Trump’s chosen ones was elected last November while the non-Trump Republicans, Kimberly Yee and Tom Horne, won their statewide races.

Then again, in a three-way general election race — facing off against Democrat-turned-independent Kyrsten Sinema and Democrat Ruben Gallego — you don’t really have to win over a majority of voters. You just have to win more than the other two.

But back to the Republican primary.

Masters’ approaching entry into the 2024 Senate race, along with the only announced Republican candidate, Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, and likely Lake, offers up an interesting prospect in one of the key battles that will decide who controls the Senate.

With three hard right America Firsters on the primary election ballot, might there be room for a traditional Republican to eke out a win?

You know, the sort who could actually win in November?

Reach Roberts at laurie.roberts@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @LaurieRoberts.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Kari Lake vs. Blake Masters: Guess who fired the first shot?