Ariz. House Speaker to take on Kirkpatrick this fall

Arizona rancher Gary Kiehne has conceded to Arizona House Speaker Andy Tobin in the Republican primary to take on Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-Ariz.), giving Republicans their best candidate for the general election.

{mosads}Though Tobin finished election night with a lead over Kiehne, election officials have spent the past week counting the thousands of provisional and same-day early ballots in the race.

Tobin had a 324-vote lead over Kiehne when the candidate conceded and endorsed Tobin on Tuesday. 

“My top priority this fall is to see Republicans win here in Arizona, so I want to offer all of my support to our Republican nominee Andy Tobin and all of the other Republican nominees in the general election,” Kiehne said in a statement.

National Republicans were wary of the prospect of having Kiehne as their nominee, due to a number of controversial comments he made during the primary, including his assertion that a majority of mass shootings are committed by Democrats.

Tobin was seen as the safest pick and drew establishment support in the primary, including the backing of the Chamber of Commerce and 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney. But he enters the general election race with baggage of his own, after suggesting immigrant children could be bringing in Ebola from Central America, in a comment that drew national attention.

Still, Republicans are bullish about their chances with Tobin in a favorable district against Kirkpatrick, who’s seen as one of Democrats’ most vulnerable incumbents in this toss-up district.