Karrin Taylor Robson in November 2024. Photo by Gage Skidmore | Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0
Karrin Taylor Robson is taking another run for Arizona governor in 2026, she announced Wednesday.
The businesswoman with deep roots in the Grand Canyon State’s Republican Party earned endorsement of President Donald Trump months ago, and he publicly backed her during his speech at Turning Point USA’s AmFest event in Phoenix in December.
“Are you running for governor?” Trump asked from the stage. “I think so, Karrin, because if you do, you’re going to have my support.”
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Taylor Robson lost her previous bid for governor in 2022 when Trump-endorsed Kari Lake ousted her in the Republican primary. Lake went on to lose in the general election to Democrat Katie Hobbs.
“I am running for Governor so we can defeat radical Katie Hobbs, support President @realDonaldTrump, lock down the border, and create jobs for Arizona,” Robson wrote in a post on the social media site X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday.
Robson joins in the race for Republican gubernatorial candidate with U.S. Congressman Andy Biggs, who announced in late January that he was exploring a bid for governor and is now collecting signatures to qualify for the 2026 ballot. Biggs is a Trump ally, and numerous Arizona Republicans on Wednesday speculated on social media that the president would ultimately end up backing the congressman in the primary next year.
Some, including former Arizona Senator Justine Wadsack, a far-right Republican, accused Robson of misleading the public when she claimed to have Trump’s endorsement.
“She is gaslighting the public with an implied endorsement,” Wadsack wrote on X. “He simply said he would support her running.”
In a video posted to social media announcing her candidacy, Robson sought to tie herself closely to Trump and some of his own campaign promises, like strong border control and improving the economy.
In the video, Robson walks along Arizona’s border fence, wearing a jean jacket, while a voiceover claims that she is “tough as nails on illegal immigration.”
“President Trump is back in the White House and he means business,” a man’s voice says in the commercial. “Arizona needs a strong governor who will help President Trump lock down our border.”
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