Arizona Senate hopeful Kari Lake is calling for the head of the state’s Republican Party to resign after leaked audio emerged.
On Tuesday night, The Daily Mail released audio of what it claimed was a phone call between Lake and Arizona Republican Party Chairman Jeff DeWitt.
In the audio, a man identified as DeWitt is heard saying, “There are very powerful people who want to keep you out.”
“Just say, is there a number at which…” he continued before Lake interjected.
She said, “I can be bought? That’s what it’s about.”
“You can take a pause for a couple of years,” DeWitt responded. “You can go right back to what you’re doing.”
Listen to the audio below:
British paper, Daily Mail released leaked audio that appears to catch Arizona GOP Chair Jeff Dewitt trying to bribe Kari Lake not to run for US Senate.
— Heidi Hatch KUTV (@tvheidihatch) January 23, 2024
Dewitt: If ‘Just say, is there a number…
Lake people she’s back.
pic.twitter.com/W1Ti82CIWF
The Hill notes it was unable to independently confirm the audio.
But speaking to NBC News’ Vaughn Hillyard on Tuesday, Lake said, “He’s gotta resign. We can’t have somebody who is corrupt and compromised running the Republican Party.”
Kari Lake calls for @AZGOP Chair Jeff DeWit to resign after release of audio in which he can be heard bribing Lake to not run for the U.S. Senate in exchange for a potential job (and its salary): https://t.co/8tF4sodXf3 pic.twitter.com/4XBSzoVyYL
— Vaughn Hillyard (@VaughnHillyard) January 24, 2024
In March 2023, Lake made the bombshell allegation she had been offered a bribe to stay out of politics for two years, as IJR reported
She shared she was told “some powerful people back East” were behind the effort.
After sharing she rebuffed the attempt, Lake claimed the individual tried again and told her, “All we’re asking for you to do is to get out of politics for two years.”