Kari Lake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kari Lake
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Lake in 2024
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| Senior Advisor to the United States Agency for Global Media | |
| Assumed office March 4, 2025 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Director | Victor Morales |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 23, 1969 Rock Island, Illinois, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (before 2006, 2012–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
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| Spouses |
Tracy Finnegan
(m. 1991; div. 1993)Jeff Halperin
(m. 1998) |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | University of Iowa (BA) |
Kari Lake Halperin (born August 23, 1969) is an American politician and former television news anchor. She serves as a special advisor to the United States Agency for Global Media under President Donald Trump. She was the Republican Party candidate for governor of Arizona in 2022 and for the U.S. Senate in 2024, but did not win either election.
Lake started her career in television news in the early 1990s. For many years, she was a news anchor for the Phoenix TV station KSAZ-TV, from 1999 to 2021. She left her job to run for governor of Arizona.
During her campaign, she was supported by former President Donald Trump. She claimed that Trump had actually won the 2020 presidential election. Lake lost the governor's race to Katie Hobbs, but she refused to accept the results. She filed lawsuits to challenge the election, but the courts rejected her case.
In 2023, Lake announced she would run for the U.S. Senate. She won the Republican nomination but lost the main election to Ruben Gallego. In 2025, she was appointed as a special advisor to the agency that manages the Voice of America news service.
Early Life and School
Kari Lake was born in 1969 in Rock Island, Illinois. Her father, Larry, was a social studies teacher and coach. Her mother, Sheila, was a nurse. Kari is the youngest of nine children.
Lake grew up in Iowa. She went to North Scott Senior High School in Eldridge, Iowa. After high school, she earned a degree in communications and journalism from the University of Iowa.
Career in Television News
Lake's media career began in 1991 as an intern at KWQC-TV in Davenport, Iowa. She later worked as a reporter and weathercaster for another station in Rock Island. In 1994, she moved to Phoenix, Arizona, and became a weather anchor for KPNX.
In 1999, Lake became an evening news anchor for KSAZ-TV in Phoenix. During her time there, she interviewed President Barack Obama in 2016 and President Donald Trump in 2020.
In her final years as a journalist, Lake was sometimes criticized for sharing unproven information on social media. In March 2021, she announced she was leaving KSAZ-TV. A few months later, she began her campaign for governor.
Political Career
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Lake was a Republican for many years. In 2006, she became an independent. In 2008, she registered as a Democrat. She said she left the Republican party because she disagreed with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
She supported Democrats John Kerry in 2004 and Barack Obama in 2008. In 2012, she switched back to the Republican Party.
2022 Run for Governor
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In June 2021, Lake announced she was running for governor of Arizona. She was one of several candidates seeking the Republican nomination. Lake became a leading candidate, along with Karrin Taylor Robson.
Lake's campaign focused on her support for Donald Trump. She promoted the false claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. Trump endorsed her, while other Republicans like former Vice President Mike Pence supported Robson. Lake won the Republican primary in August 2022.
Her Democratic opponent in the main election was Katie Hobbs. Hobbs, who was Arizona's Secretary of State, refused to debate Lake.
Views on the 2020 Election
Lake was a strong supporter of the claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Trump. She said that President Joe Biden did not really win and that Trump had won Arizona.
Even after an audit in Maricopa County found no proof of major fraud, she continued to make these claims. She called for Hobbs to be jailed over the 2020 election, though she did not provide any evidence of wrongdoing.
2024 Senate Run
Lake announced she was running for the U.S. Senate in October 2023. During this campaign, she tried to build better relationships with Republicans she had previously criticized.
In January 2024, she released a recording of a private conversation. In it, the chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, Jeff DeWit, seemed to suggest she should not run for Senate. DeWit resigned after the recording was made public.
Lake won the Republican nomination for the Senate. However, she lost the general election in November 2024 to Democrat Ruben Gallego.
Political Positions
Lake calls herself a "Trump candidate" and a conservative Republican. She has said that President Biden and the Democrats have a "demonic agenda."
Other Views
- Immigration: Lake has said that as governor, she would use state power to deport people who enter the country illegally. She also supports finishing the wall on the border with Mexico.
- Gun Laws: In an interview with an Australian news program, Lake said that Australians "have no freedom" because of their country's strict gun laws.
- Social Issues: Lake has been criticized for her views on drag performances for children, as she had attended drag events in the past. She has also changed her position on gender identity, saying in 2022 that a person's gender is determined at birth.
Personal Life
Lake married Jeff Halperin in 1998, and they have two children. She was previously married to Tracy Finnegan.
Lake was raised Catholic and later identified as a Buddhist. As of 2022, she identifies as an Evangelical Christian.
See also
In Spanish: Kari Lake para niños
