Grand Canyon Times

In a recent Fabrizio Lee poll commissioned by Saving Arizona PAC, Blake Masters, a venture capitalist and former COO of Thiel Capital, has extended his lead in the Arizona GOP primary for U.S. Senate.

In the poll released May 24, Masters increased his lead from a March poll, now leading the field with 22%, followed by Attorney General Mark Brnovich and businessman Jim Lamon at 18%.

Mick McGuire, a former adjutant general in the Arizona National Guard, only garnered 7%, and Justin Olson, a state corporation commissioner, is at 2%.

The poll also showed that former President Donald Trump’s popularity with Republican voters in Arizona stands at 88%, with 71% strongly approving.

According to Tony Fabrizio of Fabrizio Lee, the poll “found that Blake Masters is quite popular with RPV (Republican primary voters) in as far as he is known and continues to lead in the GOP primary for U.S. Senate, buoyed by those who are aware of recent ads about him, underlying the efficacy of pro-Masters communications being delivered to the RPV electorate.”

Masters’ surge in the polls has coincided with his continued fundraising success.

Since he officially entered the race, Masters has raised over $1 million every quarter, easily outdistancing the rest of the field in dollars raised. Masters, Brnovich and the rest of the Republican field are competing to see who will run against incumbent Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly in this fall’s general election.

Kelly, who was elected in a special election to complete the late Sen. John McCain’s remaining two years, will be running for a full term in November.

According to many political analysts and pollsters, the Arizona Senate race will be one of the key races to decide the majority in the U.S. Senate, which is currently at a 50-50 tie with Vice President Kamala Harris providing Democrats with the tie-breaking vote.

As Masters surges into the lead, bolstered by his strong fundraising numbers, there is another key dynamic that should have a dramatic effect on the race: the much sought-after Trump endorsement.

Within days of the new poll’s release, Trump made his endorsement of Masters. According to the Fabizio Lee poll, the Trump endorsement would lead to well over a 20 point bump for whoever receives the endorsement.

With the Republican primary on Aug. 2 rapidly approaching, it is becoming clear that the primary race for the nomination is quickly becoming a race between Masters and Lamon, with Brnovich and the rest of the field fading.