Arizona GOP censures House Speaker Rusty Bowers

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) -- The Arizona GOP executive committee censured House Speaker Rusty Bowers on Tuesday night, stating he has “lost the confidence of a majority of Republican party leaders.” Dr. Kelli Ward, Chairwoman of the Arizona GOP, confirmed the censure via Twitter. “The AZGOP Executive Committee has formally censured Rusty Bowers tonight — he is no longer a Republican in good standing & we call on Republicans to replace him at the ballot box in the August primary,” tweeted Ward.

The GOP press release highlighted some bills Bowers had backed that Republicans say went against his party. Republicans had pushed HB 2294, which stated only two genders should be named on all government documents, whereas Bowers was the sole Republican who opposed the bill. The GOP also said in the release that Bowers had joined Democrats to sponsor a $1 billion education spending bill and also killed a bill to reinstate the Pledge of Allegiance in Arizona schools permanently.

“Bowers has demonstrated he is unfit to serve the platform of the Republican Party and will of the voter of the Republican Party of Arizona,” read the release.

Bowers also testified before the Jan. 6 subcommittee back in June, saying he was pressured to overturn the election results. In the testimony, Bowers said former president Donald Trump called him and proposed to have the state replace its electors for Joe Biden with those favoring him. Bowers told the committee he wanted to see evidence of voter fraud, which he said Trump’s team never showed.

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