After historic expulsion for harassment, Don Shooter may again run for Legislature

Dustin Gardiner | The Republic | azcentral.com

Show Caption Hide Caption Don Shooter speaks to the Arizona House Rep. Don Shooter speaks to the Arizona House during a House vote on whether to remove him from office following the release of a report detailing allegations of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior at the Capitol. Carly Henry/azcentral.com

Former Arizona lawmaker Don Shooter, who was ousted from office after an investigation found he sexually harassed women, hopes to make another run at elected office.

Shooter said Monday that he's gathering petitions from Republican supporters who've collected signatures on his behalf. When he gets those, he'll determine whether he has enough to make the ballot.

The former state representative, who was expelled from the Arizona House in February, said he wants to run for the GOP nomination for state Senate in Legislative District 13, which stretches southwest from Buckeye and Glendale to Yuma.

Wednesday is the final day for candidates to submit nominating forms to the secretary of state to appear on the Aug. 28 primary ballot.

Shooter would need at least 474 valid signatures to run for the Republican ticket. He declined to say how many signatures he already has, saying his supporters are still gathering petitions.

"We’re going to pick up whatever is out there and see what happens," Shooter said. "The fact is I just don’t know yet."

Report: Shooter harassed seven women

On Feb. 1, the Arizona House voted 56-3 to expel Shooter after investigators concluded he sexually harassed at least seven women over many years, including fellow lawmakers, a lobbyist and the former publisher of The Arizona Republic.

He became the first state lawmaker in the country to be expelled in the wake of the national #MeToo movement.

Shooter has filed a $1.3 million notice of claim, a precursor to a lawsuit, against the state over his ouster. He alleges that the process used to expel him from the House of Representatives was rigged.

The House hasn't responded to Shooter's claim.

If Shooter succeeds in getting on the ballot, he would face incumbent Sen. Sine Kerr, R-Buckeye, and Brent Backus in the Republican primary.

Kerr could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday evening.

'I've proven that I can be effective'

Shooter said he has "nothing but good things to say about" Kerr. However, he said, he's running because he has experience getting things done at the Arizona Capitol.

“She’s a real nice lady," Shooter said. “I’m just going to try to make the case for me. I’ve been down there, I’ve proven that I can be effective."

He previously represented District 13 in the state Senate from 2011 to 2016, when he won election to the House.

According to the Arizona Capitol Times, Shooter denied he would run for office as recently as this month. But, he said, he was recently approached by a group of loyal supporters who volunteered to collect signatures.

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