His own sisters told people not to vote for him. Now he’s a GOP congressional nominee.
It could be one of the most competitive House seats in the nation, a rare chance this cycle for Republicans to go on the offensive and turn a blue district red without the help of redistricting.
But in a five-way primary Tuesday for the Phoenix-and Tuscon-area congressional district, Republicans nominated a scandal-ridden conservative sheriff -- a man so controversial, even two of his sisters had warned voters not to support him.
House Republican operatives say much of this is old news, and they congratulated Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu on his win Tuesday night. He'll face former police officer Tom O’Halleran in a fight to replace Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, who's challenging Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in the Senate race. Nonpartisan handicappers at Cook Political Report say Arizona's first district is a toss up.
Babeu's campaign says that Babeu, who's been a local sheriff in 2008, understands issues like immigration and environmental issues facing the district. And Republicans in the district have a history of winning over conservative Democratic Mormons in the area, so Babeu's hard-line immigration position may actually help him here.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/08/31/his-own-sisters-told-people-not-to-vote-for-him-now-hes-a-gop-congressional-nominee/