PHOENIX — Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs is expected to win the Democratic nomination for Arizona governor after Tuesday's primary election.
The race was a showdown between Hobbs and Marco Lopez and the voters appear to have selected Hobbs as their pick to face off against the Republican nominee in November's general election.
As of 8 p.m., Hobbs was ahead of Lopez by 170,000 votes, according to the Associated Press election results. The AP called the race in Hobbs' favor by 8:10 p.m.
Hobbs was the favorite to win the election after having generated a significant amount of media attention following the 2020 election.
As the secretary of state, Hobbs was responsible for overseeing Arizona's elections when Joe Biden narrowly defeated Donald Trump in the Grand Canyon State.
As Republicans spent the following months attempting to call Biden's win fraudulent, Hobbs publicly defended the state's elections system and rejected accusations that Trump had been cheated in Arizona.
Lopez had presented himself as the only Democrat capable of beating the Republican nominee in the general election by highlighting Hobbs' scandals while serving as a state legislator.
Hobbs was involved in a civil lawsuit brought on by Talonya Adams, a former Senate staffer who claimed she endured racial and sexual discrimination while working for lawmakers.
Hobbs claimed Adams' termination from the Senate was a "group decision" but regretted not being a "better ally" to Adams.
Adams went on to endorse Lopez during the primary race and Hobbs issued a public apology to her.
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DECISION 2022
Arizonans will go to the polls this November for the midterm elections. Here's everything you need to know leading up to election night.