Ken Bennett: The conservative in AZ’s Governor race

Early ballots will be mailed August 1st

Arizona’s GOP gubernatorial primary is the race to watch. Despite the failing Arizona Republic newspaper’s ongoing deprecation of conservative challenger Ken Bennett, editorially advising him to get out of the race, his message is resonating with Republican voters. 

The Republicrat camp of incumbent Doug Ducey, a staunch McCain ally, became so unhinged by Ken Bennett’s entry into the race, his nominating petition signatures were challenged in court. They lost.  Bennett remains on the ballot.

The Hillary-endorsing newspaper continues to hurl invectives at Bennett, with editorial page editor Phil Boas calling Bennett’s efforts “bizarre,” while asserting he “won’t win.”

For a memory refresher regarding the behind the scenes machinations as the primary election approaches, we urge you to read,“Bennett’s in the race: AZ Gov. Doug McDucey should be nervous.”

It provides background to Ducey’s deep connection to his political mentor and longtime friend, John McCain and his former boss Cindy Hensley McCain. She hired him for his first job after he moved to Arizona from Ohio. Ducey worked at Hensley & Co., Cindy’s Anheuser-Busch beer empire.

Bennett, an Arizona native was raised in Prescott, where he was elected to the city council and served as mayor. Later, he was elected to the Arizona Senate where he was elected senate president by his colleagues. In 2008, Ken Bennett was elected secretary of state, by Arizona citizens, a job that is next in the line of succession to the governor. A successful businessman with a degree in accounting, Bennett possesses a skill set based in finance, and would not have interjected himself into the teacher’s union foray as Ducey did, rather than putting the teacher salary trickery back in the hands of the elected school boards who rightly have the ultimate oversight.

Nervous Ducey is reshuffling members of his executive staff to his campaign, as he refuses to debate the well-qualified and experienced Bennett. No doubt Ducey doesn’t want to defend himself for acquiescing to the demands of Arizona’s #RedsforEd striking unionist teachers who violated their contractual agreements as they followed a 23-year-old Bernie Sanders-supporting socialist, abandoning 840,000 Arizona students for a week. Ducey rewarded them with a 20 percent pay increase.  They weren’t satisfied and are now moving forward with a Marxist-styled “redistribution of wealth” ballot initiative, permanently amending the AZ Constitution.  The deceptively named Invest in Education Act will harm Arizona’s small business owners and job creators, to further enhance teacher’s salaries.

Given the facts, it’s not surprising Ducey is so shaky he refuses to debate Ken Bennett.