An early Donald Trump supporter and proponent of the racist theory that Barack Obama was not born in the US, Arpaio lost the Republican primary for Maricopa county sheriff to a former aide, Jerry Sheridan. Sheridan will face off against Democrat Paul Penzone in the November elections.
This is Arpaio’s second failed attempt to return to politics since Trump pardoned him in 2017, months after he was convicted of criminal contempt of court for violating a judge’s order to stop racially profiling Latinos. In 2018, he finished last in a three-way race for a Senate nomination in Arizona. This latest defeat likely signals an end to the 88-year-old’s political career.
As the sheriff of Phoenix from 1992 through 2016, Arpaio created the “Tent City” jail that he compared to a concentration camp, where inmates were forced to work in chain gangs in Arizona’s 120F heat. His department racked up $147m in taxpayer-funded legal bills, and botched the investigations of more than 400 sex-crimes complaints.
Article submitted by, Great Gazoo.