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The move positions Arkansas as a test of the commitment of Trump, who publicly encouraged Sanders to run for governor, will be in his post-presidency in clashes over the leadership of the Republican Party, as aides, allies and family members seek to continue his work. heritage.
The Arkansas governor race will also assess how attractive Republican primary voters find personal ties to Trump and his presidency – especially in an area with other well-known Tory candidates who have also aligned with the former. President.
The competition already features two statewide officials who have strongly supported Trump as Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin, a former congressman who at one point was considered but was ignored for the post of secretary at the post. from the military in the Trump administration, and Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, a conservative who sided with Trump in court battles, including a lawsuit challenging the 2020 election results.
Sanders also has deep personal ties to Arkansas: his father Mike Huckabee spent more than a decade as governor before launching his failed presidential offers of 2008 and 2016.
Griffin greeted Sanders in the race by finding room to his right, pointing out that his announcement video called for something Arkansas had already done by defeating the Sanctuary Cities, and noting that his tax cut proposal on state revenue did not respond to his call to eliminate it. absolutely.
“I think there’s a lot to be said outside of personalities, and I’m going to talk about that. I’m going to talk a lot about ideas and substance. And in the end, that’s what makes the difference. in the life of the Arkansans, ”Griffin said in an interview Monday.
She announced her candidacy in a video posted to Twitter Monday morning. “With the radical left now in charge of Washington, your governor is your last line of defense. In fact, your governor should be on the front line,” she said.
Griffin, a former George W. Bush White House staff member, said he “wouldn’t be surprised” if Trump campaigned for Sanders. But he downplayed the importance of their personal connection, saying his own record – including time spent opposing the policies of former President Barack Obama and then-Vice President Joe Biden in Congress, as well as the implementation of policies backed by Trump in Arkansas – may better respond to the current political moment.
“I supported the policies of Trump and Trump; she did too. Great. She worked for him – that’s great. I worked for President Bush in the White House. story of fighting the Obama-Biden agenda when I was in Congress, so this will be particularly relevant now, ”Griffin said.
“For me it’s pretty much a clear choice of who’s ready on day one to lead Arkansas,” he said. “And I think you can look at it 100 different ways. Either way, I’m ready on day one. And no one else is.”
Neither Griffin nor Rutledge criticized Trump or Sanders’ association with the former president. In a statement, Rutledge touted his support for Trump’s “deregulation agenda at all levels” and said Sanders and his family were longtime friends. She said Arkansas needed “a leader with a proven track record of achievement against the liberal left.” Sanders’ campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
The fact that the Arkansas governor’s Republican primary features three top candidates sprinting to the right underscores how much the state has changed since Bill Clinton was governor; until ten years ago, the state had two Democratic senators.
Skip Rutherford, a longtime Clinton collaborator and the dean of the Clinton School of Public Service at the University of Arkansas, said it would lead to a “bloody” primary between longtime veterans of Washington politics. Arkansas GOP.
“This one is going to be the first to take names,” he said. “In the past, my friends on the Republican side have had the luxury of having a candidate to support. As I said to someone the other day, welcome to growth, welcome to choosing sides. . “
CNN’s Dan Merica contributed to this report.
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