Brewer Riding High After SB 1070

Posted on Aug 8, 2010

AP / Michael Dwyer

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer at the annual meeting of the National Governors Association on July 9 in Boston.

In the months leading up to SB 1070’s passing, Jan Brewer was seen as just a fill-in as Arizona governor and a laggard in the coming election for the post. Now after signing the anti-immigrant legislation, she is enjoying success within the party and is considered a certainty to win the state’s GOP primary in two weeks.

Brewer’s rise also signals a current in the Republican Party that may continue to push forward candidates of her ideological form. —JCL

Associated Press:

As the year began, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer faced a competitive field of fellow Republicans who wanted her job, with some GOP critics sensing she was particularly vulnerable as she sought voter approval of a sales tax increase she’d proposed to shore up the state budget.

All of that began to change in April, when she signed a tough new state law cracking down on illegal immigrants, which soon put Arizona at the heart of a rabid national debate on immigration. Now, with Arizona’s Aug. 24 GOP primary just two weeks away, not only she is riding high, but she can confidently boast of an enviable reputation among conservatives across the country.

“She essentially flipped the whole election,” said Matthew Jette, the only candidate still actively campaigning against Brewer. “She was pretty much dead last, except if you count me.”

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