Arizona GOP Selects New Chair After Attempted Kari Lake Bribery Scandal

The Arizona Republican Party selected a new Trump-supported chair on Saturday after the former chair resigned following a bribery controversy.

Ms. Swoboda was elected at the annual GOP meeting held at Dream City Church in north Phoenix on Saturday which was attended by over 1,000 people. Earlier, only elections for the party’s lower level positions were scheduled for the day.

Three candidates were initially nominated as the new chair of the Arizona GOP—Ms. Swoboda, Arizona Corporation Commissioner Jim O’Connor, and Mesa resident Verl Farnsworth who had run for the post of U.S. president back in 2012.

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“Arizona is the key to the presidency. I was proud to have the support of President Trump in this victory to lead the AZGOP into the most important election of our lifetime. Now it’s time to turn out every last vote for the 47th President, DONALD J TRUMP!”

“President Trump and I were VERY proud to endorse Gina. We look forward to restoring Arizona’s faith in elections and winning BIG in 2024.”

Ms. Swaboda works as a senior adviser on elections for the Arizona Senate. She is the executive director of the Voter Reference Foundation, which describes itself as “dedicated to ensuring transparent, accurate, and fair elections” in the country.

The Controversy

The bribery scandal that led to Mr. DeWit’s resignation came to light after The Daily Mail published a recording dating back to March 2023 featuring a conversation between him and Ms. Lake.

In the recording, Mr. DeWit says that “very powerful people” want to keep Ms. Lake out of the Senate race for two years. “They’re willing to put their money where their mouth is in a big way. So this conversation never happened,” he said.

“This is crazy though. They should want me. I’m a great candidate. People love me. These people are corrupt,” Ms. Lake responded. “This is about defeating Trump, and I think that’s a bad, bad thing for our country … This is about the final death blow to Trump, and I don’t think that’s good for our country.”

Mr. DeWit agreed. “It’s not … but at the same time I’m not even sure Trump can win again.”

“Just say, is there a number at which …” Mr. DeWit says. At this moment, Ms. Lake cuts in asking, “I can be bought? That’s what it’s about.”

Mr. DeWit suggests that he might be killed if the powerful figures behind him offering the bribe were to be exposed. “Don’t tell anybody we had this conversation,” he warns Ms. Lake.

After the recording was published, Ms. Lake said in an interview with NBC on Tuesday that Mr. DeWit’s “got to resign.”

On the same day, Mr. Dewit said he resigned from the post of Arizona GOP chair. In a statement, he accused Ms. Lake’s team of secretly recording their controversial conversation and leaking it to the media.

“I said things I regret, but I realize when hearing Lake’s recording that I was set up,” he said. “I believe she orchestrated this entire situation to have control over the state party.”

During the Saturday election when Ms. Lake took to the stage to nominate Ms. Swoboda, some audience members booed in an apparent rebuff to her involvement in the bribing scandal.

In an interview with AZCentral, Arizona Speaker of the House Ben Toma said that the recent turmoil was “unfortunate” for the party.

“I hope we can find a way to get united as a party very soon because I think that matters a lot. … It’ll make a big difference by the time we get to the general election,” he said.

J.D. Watson, a state committee member from Scottsdale, said he was concerned about the corruption exposed by the scandal. “I believe that [DeWit] did something wrong. … He needs to own up to it and stop being the victim.”

Mr. Watson also appreciated that Ms. Lake turned down the bribe and potentially leaked her conversation with Mr. DeWit. “We’re talking six figures, possibly, and she could not be bought.”