Acclaimed horror author Stephen King criticized failed Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake after she shared her motivations for running for Senate, saying her words betray her "narcissism."
Lake, a contender in the 2022 Arizona governor's race with backing from Donald Trump, faced defeat by Democratic opponent Katie Hobbs but refused to concede. Her legal attempts to challenge certified election results in Maricopa County were dismissed for lack of evidence of misconduct.
Undeterred by her gubernatorial loss, Lake has set her sights on a 2024 Arizona Senate seat, entering a field that may include Democrat Ruben Gallego and possibly incumbent Kyrsten Sinema. Despite Sinema's unconfirmed re-election plans, Lake remains committed to her Senate bid.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Lake said she is "tougher" than she thought because she "grew up in a big family" and had to learn to be self-reliant. She said she knows "that Arizonans are with [her] every step of the way" and that she is "doing this for them."
In a video shared with her post, she elaborated further:
"I've always had a really good work ethic and it's really hard to get me down. I'm a pretty positive person actually, the media doesn't always portray me that way but I've learnt that I've faced a lot of strife in the last year."
"It's not just me, Americans and Arizonans are but personally, what happened to us in that last election was very difficult and I've learned that I can keep up and plow right through every day."
"I'm worried our country is on its last months, not even years, last months, I'm not even sure how much we can survive."
You can see her post below.
However, King rebuked Lake's statement, asserting that her determination stemmed from personal ambition rather than genuine concern for constituents. He likened her demeanor to former President Donald Trump's alleged narcissism, highlighting what he perceives as Lake's inability to accept electoral rejection.
He said:
"You're doing it for yourself. Like Trump, your narcissism won't allow you to face the fact that you were rejected by the people."
You can see his post below.
Lake's campaign account disregarded his words, replying later with a thank you for his "input" and a donation link to help "fuel" our movement.
Others concurred with King's assessment, however.
Lake's commitment to running for Senate has garnered criticism because the 2022 election results that Arizonans had had enough of Lake and her reactionary MAGA brand of politics that made Arizona a hotbed for election fraud conspiracies, many of them furthered by Lake herself.
Lake's loss was yet another sign that those who've backed Trump's "Big Lie" that the 2020 general election was stolen were being repudiated at the ballot box.
The overwhelming majority of Trump's chosen candidates failed to make traction on Election Night, which did not result in the "red wave" Republican legislators and pollsters had counted on.
Lake and her supporters, for their part, alleged wrongdoing right to the bitter end, even going so far as to demand the military step in and redo what they alleged is a "false" election as she continued to fall behind Hobbs.
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