Sen. Justine Wadsack gets hit by a devastating (and hilarious) ad campaign

“Something’s weird about Justine Wadsack.”

So starts the opening salvo in what promises to be a bruiser of a Republican primary in southern Arizona — one that could well determine whether Democrats have a shot at seizing control of the Arizona Senate.

Wadsack is one of the Legislature’s fiercest culture warriors, a member of the hard-right Arizona Freedom Caucus who came to the Capitol to wage war on drag queens, teachers, the LGBTQ+ community and, generally, anyone who offends her.

She moved out of her family’s central Tucson home in 2022, renting a room in a safe Republican district where she proceeded to knock off Republican Sen. Vince Leach.

Of course, it didn’t hurt that she was blessed with a three-way contest that pitted her against two traditional conservatives in a newly drawn legislative district.

Leach's attack ads are devastatingly true

Now Leach is back, and if alarm bells aren’t ringing wildly on the Good Ship Wadsack, they should be.

Because Leach is coming for her in the July 30 primary and this time, it’s one-on-one. No third candidate to split the establishment vote.

This week, Leach unleashed the first two of what promise to be a series of ads, entitled “Something is weird about Justine Wadsack.”

One of the ads features Wadsack’s belief that 9/11 was an “inside job.”

The 15-second ad is devastatingly simple … and true.

(“I made the decision to NOT trust my government THAT day!” Wadsack wrote in September, replying to a social media poster who suggested the government was involved in the deadliest terrorist attack ever on U.S. soil. “It never added up. Still doesn’t, and now look at the state of thing.”)

The other ad highlights Wadsack’s belief that the May 2022 massacre of 19 children and two adults at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, was a false flag operation.

Also devastatingly simple and also true. (“I believe it has everything to do with instilling Red Flag laws and gun regulations that move America toward losing our 2nd Amendment,” she wrote on Facebook.)

Wadsack has done plenty to fuel more ads

That ought to go over well in district that boasts some of the most affluent and best educated voters in the state.

No doubt, the “something’s weird” ads will continue, as there is an embarrassing amount of material:

There’s that time Wadsack posted a picture of herself and her running mate, Rep. Rachel Jones, posing in front of the state Capitol with their trusty AR-15-style rifles — in high heels, no less.

Or that time she tweeted out the Q-Anon slogan.

There’s the time when, in her zeal to protect kids from drag queens, she introduced a bill that would have made it a crime to let your kids watch “Mulan.”

Or that time she put her personality on full display as she ran a bill to eviscerate the State Bar of Arizona, weaving a fanciful tale of the bar’s threats to “immediately disbar” any attorney who dared to represent a COVID-19 denier.

Her accusations were only slightly more astonishing than her response when politely asked by Democratic Rep. Analise Ortiz if she could provide evidence to back up her claim:

“Rep. Ortiz, I don’t owe you anything in the way of proof,” Wadsack snipped. “The fact that I am an elected state senator, I come before you after having spoken with hundreds of people that went through this.”

Democrats are rooting for Wadsack to win

Then there was that time — just two years ago — when she barely clawed out a win in the general election, drawing just 51.2% of the vote in a district where Republicans enjoy a nearly 10-point advantage.

Don’t think Democrats haven’t made note of that this year, as they seek to flip the Republicans’ one-vote majority in the Senate. Their entry into this race is John McLean, a retired Tucson businessman making his first run for office.

Legislative District 17 could be ripe for the picking if Wadsack’s the Republican nominee.

These GOP lawmakers: Could have easily lost their jobs

Democrats Mark Kelly, Katie Hobbs and Adrian Fontes all defeated their America First opponents here in 2022.

Should Leach, a business-oriented conservative, win the primary, the Republicans are a lock to hold the seat.

Still, it’s advantage Wadsack as she’s the incumbent and now at least rents an apartment in the district.

“The rule since (20)16 is the more MAGA candidate always wins,” longtime Republican consultant Chuck Coughlin told me, referring to Republican primaries in Arizona. “Rules are rules for a reason, and over 50% of Republican primary voters are election deniers.”

She could be the key to flipping the Senate

Yet at some point, surely Republicans are going to get tired of losing.

It’s worth noting that two years ago, 59% of Republican primary voters in this district voted for a traditional conservative.

Because there were two of them, Wadsack won with 41% of the vote.

Keep your eye on this race as Wadsack could be the Democrats’ best hope of stealing a Republican seat and with it, control of the the Senate.

There’s definitely something weird about that.

Reach Roberts at [email protected]. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) at @LaurieRobertsaz.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Justine Wadsack could win and make Arizona Republicans lose the Senate