Jan 9, 2018 - Politics & Policy
Joe Arpaio is running for Senate
- Erica Pandey, author of Axios Finish Line
Arpaio endorsed Trump for president in January 2016. Photo: Scott Olson / Getty Images
Former Sheriff Joe Arpaio — the recipient of President Trump's first official pardon — is running for Sen. Jeff Flake's open seat in Arizona, the Washington Examiner reports.
Why it matters: In August, Trump granted Arpaio a pardon of his conviction for criminal contempt for disregarding a 2011 court order to stop detaining people based on suspicions they were undocumented immigrants. Critics have called the practice racist and discriminatory, and Trump's pardon decision was a highly controversial one.