A conservative state senator from western Arizona might take on Republican Sen. John McCain in next year's GOP primary for the U.S. Senate.
State Sen. Kelli Ward of Lake Havasu City, a physician entering her second term in the Legislature, confirmed late Sunday she is considering a run against McCain.
Ward would bring with her a fervent "tea party" base that has rebelled against McCain, pushing through a censure of the senator last year by the Arizona Republican Party. McCain allies recently failed in their attempt to install a new chairman of the Maricopa County Republican Party, the source of much of the senator's political heartburn.
Ward's interest in the race was first reported on this weekend's "Sunday Square Off." She had been rumored to be looking at a run for the congressional seat currently held by Republican Paul Gosar.
Ward said in a prepared statement late Sunday:
"I have been approached by many Arizonans who have asked me to throw my hat into the ring and run for the US Senate. People have come to know me by my principled conservative voting record and my interactive communication style which leads them to trust that I would continue to represent Arizona well, regardless of the office. I am listening and speaking with people, and a US Senate race is something under active consideration." McCain is expected to formally announce his run for a sixth term in the Senate within the next few months.
Speculation about potential primary challengers has focused on GOP Congressmen Matt Salmon and David Schweikert. Schweikert isn't inclined to run; Salmon has been mum.
Ward would enter a Senate race with almost incalculable disadvantages in fundraising and name recognition. She had to raise little more that $50,000 in her recent run for the Senate.
McCain spent more than $20 million in crushing former Congressman J.D. Hayworth in the 2010 Republican primary for Senate.
But national conservatives with money to spend have been shopping for a candidate to take on McCain.
