Arizona GOP Censures Rusty Bowers, Star Witness in January 6 Probe

Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers, a star witness at the House Jan. 6 committee, has been formally censured by the Republican Party of Arizona which said it would no longer support him.

Bowers testified before the House committee investigating the January 6 Capitol uprising last month that former President Donald Trump and his legal team called him to discuss a plot to overturn the state's election after President Joe Biden's narrow victory in the key swing state. Their plan allegedly included an effort to appoint pro-Trump election officials who would falsely declare a Trump victory.

Bowers originally revealed the plan in a press release in December 2020 but said he would not work to overturn an election that had already been certified.

The chairwoman of the Arizona GOP, Kelli Ward, shared the news of Bowers' censure on her Twitter page and in a press release.

"The AZGOP Executive Committee formally censured Rusty Bowers tonight," she tweeted on Tuesday night.

"He is no longer a Republican in good standing and we call on Republicans to replace him at the ballot box in the August primary."

The decision comes just two weeks before Bowers is due to stand in a Republican primary for the Arizona Senate on August 2, in which he is up against former Arizona state Senator David Farnsworth, who has been endorsed by Trump.

Trump said in a statement ahead of Bowers' June 21 testimony that Bowers had conceded to him that "the election was rigged and that I won Arizona". But Bowers denied this, saying: "[If] Anywhere, anyone, anytime has said that I said the election was rigged, that would not be true."

The Arizona GOP's press release highlighted alleged issues with Bowers' behavior before summarising the action it was taking against him.

"Therefore be it resolved, that the Executive Committee of the Republican Party of Arizona hereby formally censures Representative Rusty Bowers and shall immediately cease any and all recognition and support of him as a member of the Republican Party for his inaction on election integrity," the statement read.

Other reasons cited were "his specific actions addressed herein including co-sponsoring Democrat-led bills that have opposed core planks and tenets of the Republican Party Platform and for his general disregard for precinct, legislative, county and state and national Republican Party leadership.

"Be it further resolved, that the Executive Committee of the Republican Party of Arizona calls on the Republican Party in Maricopa County and the newly formed Legislative District 10 to contemplate a similar censure of Speaker Bowers and to encourage all registered Republicans to expel him permanently from office in the impending primary election."

Newsweek has contacted Bowers for comment.