Arizona governor says state GOP's censuring him is 'of very little consequence'

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey on Sunday brushed off the state Republican Party’s censure of him as an “action of very little consequence.”

“The party in Arizona has had a long history of discontent. This is just the latest example,” the Republican governor said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

“The state party chairman should focus on winning races. That should be a top priority,” Ducey said.

Over the past two years, Republicans lost both Senate seats, and the state flipped Democratic in the 2020 presidential race for the first time since 1996.

Still, the state Republican Party has signaled loyalty to former President Donald Trump, censuring the governor, along with former Republican Sen. Jeff Flake and Cindy McCain, the wife of the late Republican Sen. John McCain. Ducey publicly opposed the president’s efforts to overturn the election results, and Flake and McCain endorsed Democrat Joe Biden for president.

“I worked incredibly hard to deliver the state for Donald Trump and red up through Election Day," Ducey said. "Then, after Election Day, of course, once all the ballots were certified in all 15 counties, the vote had been audited and determined accurate, I had very little choice but to do the right thing, follow the law and the Constitution."

On Sunday, the governor also once again squashed rumors that he might challenge Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) in 2022. “I'm not running for the United States Senate, no,” Ducey said.