GOP frets as Trump-endorsed candidate faces sexting scandal amid ‘messy’ primary: NYT

A Trump-backed Republican and former county sheriff has been accused of sexting women outside of his marriage and then threatening his accusers to try and stop them from posting about it online, as questions have been raised over whether the scandal could impact him in the primary election this week, The New York Times reported on Monday.

Mark Lamb, who is vying for Arizona’s Fifth Congressional District to replace Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), who is running for governor, was expected to be the GOP front-runner in the “messy race” as voters cast their ballots in the primary across the state on Tuesday, according to The Times.

“But the contest between Mark Lamb, the former Pinal County sheriff, and a lesser-known businessman in a deeply religious part of the state is a test of the power of a Trump endorsement — and the potency of a sex scandal in a Republican primary,” The Times reported.

A bombshell report from The Arizona Republic in May detailed allegations that he had sent women intimate images and used a campaign social media account to engage in flirtations, including an accusation that he “facilitated an affair between his wife and a friend who worked on his campaign and for the sheriff’s department.” This report also indicated Lamb made racist jokes via text messages and spent time at a Tennessee ranch. Lamb, who is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, had claims around his behavior investigated by the church.

A spokesperson for Lamb, Ed Morabito, told The Times that the accusations were “lies and slanderous and come from long-discredited individuals.”

“Sheriff Mark Lamb is endorsed by President Trump, and every independent poll has him winning easily by double digits,” Morabito said.

Lamb’s opponent, Daniel Keenan, has spent $1.65 million to run an ad that describes Lamb as an unfit candidate.

“The Republican Party can’t afford to have their version of Graham Platner,” Keenan, who founded a building company, told The Times. “If he somehow survives the primary,” Keenan said, discussing Lamb, “he puts our district at risk of falling to the Democrats because they’re going to pour in millions, exploiting all of his, you know, personal allegations.”