10 Oct 31st-NOv 6th, 2024 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | Hunting for Votes? Does Kari Lake really hunt or is she just pretending? BY TJ L’HEUREUX I t’s almost always the same photo. In it, Kari Lake is kneeling against a wooded backdrop, wearing khaki pants, a camouflage shirt and a brown-and-tan “Kari Lake” hat. Through sunglasses, she looks off to the side, a big grin on her face. One hand holds a pump-action shotgun, barrel pointed toward the sky. It’s a good picture, which is perhaps why the Republican candidate for Senate has used it so often. She posted it to social media on Sept. 23, 2023, to celebrate National Hunting and Fishing Day. This year, the former newscaster has reposted it twice — on Sept. 1 for the opening day of hunting season; and on Oct. 12, in an apparent taunt of Kamala Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. The posts — particularly the dig at Walz — are designed to give the impression that Lake is a seasoned hunter. But is that impression accurate? Phoenix New Times attempted to find out. What’s certain is that Lake does not have a long paper trail of hunting in Arizona. Records from the Arizona Game and Fish Department show that between 1999 and June 2024 — the years Lake has lived in Arizona — she and her husband, Jeff Halperin, held hunting licenses for only one year. They purchased them on Aug. 30, 2021, while Lake was running for governor. They expired a year later, months before she lost the 2022 election to Katie Hobbs. Lake and Halperin also each purchased a stamp to hunt migratory birds on the same day they purchased their licenses, just two days before dove season opened. It’s unclear whether Lake purchased a license this year. When asked if Lake currently has a hunting license, campaign spokesperson Alex Nicoll responded: “Kari Lake follows the law, so of course she’s had a hunting license every time she’s gone hunting, a fishing license every time she’s gone fishing and a driving license every time she’s driven. Oh, and an ID every time she’s voted.” If Lake actually has hunted, her social media posts are light on details. The one time Lake shared a different hunting photo — on Sept. 1, 2023, the first day of hunting season that year — she’s captured from a different angle but wearing a nearly iden- tical outfit and sitting in a nearly identical stance. Seeking an expert opinion about whether Lake’s hunting posts pass the smell test, New Times showed Lake’s photos to Chandler resident Frank Cota, a 64-year-old U.S. Marine Corps veteran and lifelong hunter. He immediately noticed a safety concern. “If she had any safety in her brain right there,” Cota said, “she would be holding that weapon with two hands.” The nonchalance also bothered him. Lake’s photos do not include any kills, a staple of a successful hunting trip. Instead, Lake comes across as a Whenever Kari Lake posts on social media about hunting, she almost always includes this same photo. (Courtesy of Kari Lake Campaign X Account) >> p 11 | NEWS |
