New York Times
By Ian Lovett
March 12, 2014
GLENDALE,
Ariz. — Gov. Jan Brewer of Arizona, a Republican whose approval of
controversial measures on immigration and abortion have repeatedly put
her in the national
spotlight, announced Wednesday that she would not run for re-election,
ending speculation that she might seek a third term.
“There
does come a time to pass the torch of leadership,” Ms. Brewer said
during brief comments at an elementary school here. “After completing
this term in office, I
will be doing just that.”
Even
though the Arizona Constitution limits governors to two consecutive
terms, Ms. Brewer had lately talked of finding a way around the term
limits. She was Arizona’s
secretary of state in 2009 when the governor at the time, Janet
Napolitano, left to become President Obama’s Homeland Security
secretary. Under the state’s succession rules, this meant that Ms.
Brewer got the top job.
This
year, with a roster of candidates lining up to replace her, Ms. Brewer
toyed with the idea of trying to stay in office, saying she could make a
case in court that
although she had served two terms, one of them was not an elected term,
so it should not count.
In
her five years in office, Ms. Brewer, 69, has presided over one of the
more tumultuous legislative periods in the state’s history. She first
emerged as a nationally
polarizing figure in 2010 when she signed into law some of the nation’s
toughest measures against illegal immigrants. In 2012, she signed one
of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country. An appeals court
struck the law down last year.
Late
last month, Ms. Brewer was again in the national spotlight when the
Arizona Legislature passed a bill that would have given business owners
the right to invoke religion
to refuse service to gays, lesbians and others. She vetoed the measure
after a dramatic few days of speculation about what she would do.
Speaking
at the elementary school that her children had attended — where she
first decided to run for office, after a school board meeting in the
cafeteria — Ms. Brewer
spoke of what she viewed as her accomplishments as governor.
“We
have been steadfast in fighting for state sovereignty and individual
liberty,” she said, adding that her administration had steered Arizona
out of a recession that
hit the state harder than most others. “We’ve worked relentlessly to
rescue Arizona from the economic brink.”
Few
who are involved in Arizona politics had expected Ms. Brewer to run
again, given the court challenge that would most likely have followed.
She did not take questions
after her statement, but Andrew Wilder, a spokesman for the governor,
said that term limits were not what had motivated her decision to step
aside.
“This
was a very personal decision,” Mr. Wilder said, adding that if she had
run, “she would have done so believing she would prevail.”
Mr.
Wilder said that Ms. Brewer “hasn’t indicated an intention to run for
another office,” but that she did plan to stay involved in politics,
supporting “candidates that
share her approach to governing.”
With
Ms. Brewer out of the race for governor, the primary now amounts to a
battle for the ideological future of the Republican Party.
The
Republicans who have already signaled their candidacies range from Tea
Party favorites to business advocates to moderates. They include Ken
Bennett, the secretary
of state; Doug Ducey, the state treasurer and former chief executive of
Cold Stone Creamery; Al Melvin, a state senator from Tucson; Scott
Smith, the mayor of Mesa; and Christine Jones, a political novice who
has worked as general counsel for the Internet
service company Go Daddy. Also planning to run is Andrew Thomas, the
former Maricopa County attorney disbarred over ethical violations, who
is campaigning on enforcing border security as he aims for a political
comeback.
On
the Democratic side is Fred DuVal, a former chairman of the state’s
Board of Regents, who may face an uphill fight in a state long dominated
by Republicans.
Nathan
Sproul, a Republican strategist, called the contest the most wide-open
Republican primary in more than two decades of governor’s races.
“This
primary will definitely determine the direction of the Republican Party
in the state; there are very distinct differences between the
candidates,” he said. “If anyone
told you that they knew where this race stood, they would not be
telling the truth. This race is as wide open as it can possibly be.”
Ms.
Brewer has not yet endorsed any of the candidates, but she may yet play
a defining role in the campaign. She has deep reserves in her political
action committees,
money that she can use to help candidates running for office both in
Arizona and nationally.
She
has not always sided with her party. Ms. Brewer was a driving force
behind the expansion of Medicaid in Arizona, a stand that put her at
odds with Republicans in the
State Legislature and the Center for Arizona Policy, a powerful
advocacy group behind the bill on refusing service to gays and other
controversial legislation. She also helped push through a sales tax to
stave off cuts to education and other services.
“In
Arizona, I think she’s going to be remembered for guiding the state
through this very difficult recession,” said Patrick J. Kenney, a
professor of political science
at Arizona State University. “And nationally, she’ll be remembered for
being at the forefront of these tough immigration policies.”
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