Here’s why Arizona voters preferred Donald Trump and Ruben Gallego over Kamala Harris, Kari Lake

PHOENIX — New polling provides insight into why Arizona voters elected Republican Donald Trump over Democrat Kamala Harris but preferred Ruben Gallego over Kari Lake.

In the presidential race, 51% of all voters preferred Trump’s policies, according to findings released Thursday by Phoenix-based Noble Predictive Insights (NPI).

Only 42% preferred Harris’ policies, while 7% weren’t sure.

NPI’s latest findings come from a Nov. 20-25 survey of 988 registered Arizona voters. The results have a margin of error of plus or minus 3.10%.

Which issues impacted Arizona election results the most?

David Byler, NPI’s chief of research, said the difference in priorities between red and blue voters was striking.

“Democrats cared about abortion and threats to democracy much more than immigration,” Byler said in a news release. “Republicans saw immigration and the economy as crises caused by the Biden administration.”

The Arizona election results results mirrored opinions expressed in pre-election polling, he added.

He also said Harris’ close connection to President Joe Biden, who had a low approval rating in Arizona, was a factor in the vice president’s loss.

Fifty-six percent of Arizona voters believed Harris represented an extension of the Biden administration, while only 33% saw her as a new politician who would take the country in a new direction. Another 11% weren’t sure.

“The election proved that the GOP argument — about the economy, immigration, and dissatisfaction with how Biden governed — won the day,” Byler said.

Arizona election results explain why Ruben Gallego won

Despite widespread success for Republicans across Arizona, one Democrat had an enormous victory this election cycle.

Gallego defeated Lake in the race for U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s seat by 2.4 percentage points, which NPI attributes both to the Democrat’s campaign strategies and the GOP candidate’s weaknesses.

More than half (53%) of voters disapproved of Lake, according to the poll findings.

Some of the top reasons for their dislike include her cited her refusal to accept her loss in the 2022 gubernatorial election to Katie Hobbs (51%), her personality (45%), her imitation of Trump without offering new ideas (44%).

Gallego’s victory was no surprise for NPI CEO Mike Noble.

“It’s interesting to see just how negative of an impact Lake’s election denials have had for her – even though Trump’s election denial didn’t impact him in the same ways,” he said.