Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey announced Thursday he would not be a candidate for US Senate in 2022, ending speculation about whether he would reconsider his previous stance against seeking the party’s nomination to challenge Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly this fall.
In a letter to donors obtained by CNN, Ducey, who is term-limited this year as Arizona governor, said his « mind hasn’t changed » from January 2021, when he initially said he would not run for the Senate. « These days, if you’re going to run for public office, you have to really want the job, » Ducey wrote. « Right now I have the job I want, and my intention is to close my years of service to Arizona with a very productive final legislative session AND to help elect Republican governors across the country in my role as chairman of the Republican Governors Association. » The letter was first reported by The Arizona Republic. A senior adviser to Senate Republicans said Ducey’s letter to supporters closes the door on repeated attempts to recruit him into the Arizona Senate race.