Arizona Republican Kari Lake is expected to break a Mar-a-Lago fundraising record Wednesday night, according to reports.
Lake, a Donald Trump-endorsed U.S. Senate candidate, is vying for independent Senator Kyrsten Sinema’s seat, along with Democratic opponent Representative Ruben Gallego. Sinema announced last month that she will not seek reelection.
“Kari Lake’s Mar-a-Lago fundraiser is at capacity, according to a source familiar,” Reese Gorman, politics reporter for the Daily Beast, said in a post to X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday.
He continued: “It is expected to break the record for most money raised for a Senate GOP challenger at Mar-a-Lago. Arizona is seen as a top pick up opportunity for Senate Republicans this cycle.”
Lake’s campaign confirmed Gorman’s reporting with Newsweek.
Two campaign officials told ABC News that Lake has raised just over $1 million at the fundraiser that was underway at the time of publication. Tickets for the event cost $1,000 per person, with some packages as much as $100,000 per couple for a two-night stay at Mar-a-Lago and dinner with Lake following the reception.
Gorman’s post was shared on X by Jason Miller, senior adviser to former President Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Newsweek reached out to Lake and Gallego’s campaigns as well as Trump’s spokesperson via email for comment on Wednesday.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
Trump, the presumed 2024 GOP presidential nominee, owns the Palm Beach, Florida, resort where Lake’s Wednesday night fundraiser is being held. The event will include appearances from comedians Roseanne Barr, Jim Breuer and Chad Prather.
Lake has been a strong supporter of Trump, echoing his evidence-free claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him in favor of President Joe Biden due to widespread voter fraud.
The Republican also claimed that the 2022 Arizona gubernatorial election was stolen from her. Lake lost to Democrat Katie Hobbs by over 17,000 votes. No evidence exists to support Lake’s claims.
Republican Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer has sued Lake for defamation over her stolen-election claims. Richer said he has faced “violent vitriol and other dire consequences” because of Lake’s allegations, including death threats.
Last month, Lake declined to defend herself against the lawsuit, asking a judge to skip to the damages phase of the case.
“By participating in this lawsuit, it would only serve to legitimize this perversion of our legal system and allow bad actors to interfere in our upcoming election,” Lake said in a video posted to social media at the time. “So I won’t be taking part.”
Gallego called Lake “an election denier and conspiracy theorist,” in an X post last month. Lake compared Gallego to the president, calling him a “mini-me Joe Biden” at an event last month.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.