Kari Lake refuses to say whether she would accept loss in Arizona election

Arizona Republican gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake repeatedly declined to say Sunday whether she would accept the results of the election if she loses.

In an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Lake dodged when she was asked multiple times whether she would accept the results if she loses.

Lake pivoted to attack her Democratic opponent, state Secretary of State Katie Hobbs. She then said twice, “I’m going to win the election, and I will accept that result,” before she continued her attacks against Hobbs.

Lake, a former newscaster backed by former President Donald Trump, has put denial of the 2020 election results in Arizona at the forefront of her campaign. She has repeatedly boosted Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud and falsely called President Joe Biden an illegitimate president.

Lake previously claimed without evidence that the midterm elections might be tainted by fraud. She made similar comments before the Republican primary in August.

“They’re going to have to cheat even harder in order to win this,” Lake said at a debate in June against other GOP candidates.

Hobbs, who has refused to debate, defended her decision Sunday in a separate interview on “State of the Union.” Hobbs accused Lake of being “only interested in creating a spectacle.”

Lake has repeatedly called Hobbs a “coward” for her refusal to share the debate stage. Lake was booted from an Arizona candidates town hall before Hobbs took the stage this month.

source: nbcnews.com