Andy Biggs taps Sine Kerr as his pick for lieutenant governor
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Sine Kerr and Rep. Andy Biggs. Photos: Courtesy of the Biggs campaign; Gage Skidmore/Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0
U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, the GOP nominee for Arizona governor, announced on Friday his pick for the newly created position of lieutenant governor: former state lawmaker Sine Kerr.
Why it matters: Kerr essentially will be Biggs' running mate, and her record and views will affect how the far-right Biggs can appeal to mainstream conservatives as he runs to unseat Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs.
- Kerr is a Buckeye resident who served in the Arizona Senate from 2018 to 2025. On Wednesday she stepped down from her position as the Arizona executive director of the USDA Farm Service Agency.
- Kerr is a hardline conservative arguably most known for pushing a 2021 bill that would have completely banned abortion, including in cases of rape or incest. She has deep agricultural ties that could benefit Biggs' campaign.
What they're saying: "I am thrilled to have Sine Kerr as my running mate and Arizona's first nominee to be Lieutenant Governor," Biggs said in a press release.
- "Sine knows Arizona's agriculture community as well as anyone and has the respect of farmers, ranchers, and policy makers from around the state."
"I know what our ranchers and farmers need to be successful and pass on their legacy to the next generation," Kerr said in a statement. "Rural Arizona will always have a seat at the table in a Biggs-Kerr Administration."
State of play: Several political consultants tell Axios Kerr is a safe but somewhat uninspired pick with some vulnerabilities:
- Her history of pushing extreme abortion bans is likely to be an attack line during the campaign.
- While she's not exactly an election denier, she voted for the Cyber Ninjas audit of the 2020 election.
Zoom in: She's never won more than a rural, deep-red seat in the state Legislature.
- "All you need to know about Sine Kerr is that she is so extreme she agreed to be the running mate of Andy Biggs," Hobbs campaign manager Nicole DeMont said in a press release.
Flashback: Arizona voters voted to create the lieutenant governor position in 2022. This is the first gubernatorial election since the law went into effect.
How it works: The lieutenant governor is the first in the line of succession if the governor dies, resigns or is removed from office, and must serve as the governor's chief of staff or lead a state agency under the governor's purview.
- Biggs' campaign told the Arizona Republic that Kerr will likely head the Arizona Department of Agriculture under his administration.
Between the lines: Previously, the secretary of state, also an elected position, succeeded the governor — even if they were from different parties.
- In 2009, Democratic Gov. Janet Napolitano resigned to join the Obama administration, elevating Republican Secretary of State Jan Brewer to the governor's office.
What's next: Hobbs has yet to announce her lieutenant governor pick. Her campaign declined to comment to Axios on her selection process and timeline.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that Kerr stepped down from her position as the Arizona executive director of the USDA Farm Service Agency and to include additional information.