Kari Lake has run-in with Ruben Gallego at the Phoenix airport: "I'm not going to work with you, I'm going to beat you"

Kari Lake recently filed her 2024 Arizona Senate candidacy papers. A few days later, by chance, she ran into Ruben Gallego at an airport, a congressman and current Democratic candidate who will seek to defeat her in November of next year. Their conversation soon went viral on social media.

Lake registered her Senate campaign committee with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday, making her entry into a potential three-way race official. At the moment, Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) has not declared whether or not she will seek re-election, while Democrat Ruben Gallego has been campaigning and raising money for months.

Indeed, the Republican crossed paths with the congressman at the airport in Phoenix, which led to an exchange that soon went viral on social media. Lake, dressed formally in a gray jacket, ran into a more casual Gallego sporting a blue cap. The duo soon began talking about the number of undocumented immigrants entering the southern border, marking an informal start to the campaign.

In a video broadcast by The Daily Caller, the former gubernatorial candidate is heard scolding the congressman over Joe Biden’s current immigration policy. “Unfortunately, our border’s wide open. You and Kyrsten have had a lot of time to do something about it. And even the Democrats are upset about it,” Lake shot back.

Gallego then tried to reach a consensus with his rival, claiming that the border crisis is an issue on which they could work together. “The problem is that we have a lot of people here right now. We have millions of people here. Fentanyl has killed more young people,” the Republican continued.

Lake also took the opportunity to highlight the work of the Trump Administration regarding the border, highlighting the work that was done during his presidency (2017-2021). While she said that she appreciated Gallego’s service as a congressman, she said she would appreciate it even more if he cared a little more about border security.

The Democrat continued with his offer of solidarity and again offered to work together. “Let’s go down to the border together,” he said. Let’s get the mayors together,” he added, although Lake was not very interested in his offer. “I’m not going to work alongside you, I’m going to beat you,” she said.

At the moment, the two are looking to face each other in the 2024 Senate elections, although the participation of Sinema, the Independent incumbent, has yet to be confirmed. If she enters the race, the election would have three strong candidates who could divide the vote into three. According to the only survey to date, before Lake’s entry, Gallego would emerge victorious.