Kelli Ward: Donald Trump told me Joe Arpaio 'shouldn't get in' the U.S. Senate race

Yvonne Wingett Sanchez | Arizona Republic

U.S. Senate candidate Kelli Ward told supporters that President Donald Trump personally told her last year that he did not want her Republican rival — and Trump's ally — Joe Arpaio to enter the race for Arizona's open seat.

Ward, a former state senator from Lake Havasu City, gave her account of the conversation with Trump while speaking at a May 24 event, according to video obtained by The Arizona Republic.

Ward is facing Arpaio, a former Maricopa County sheriff, and U.S. Rep. Martha McSally, a two-term congresswoman from Tucson, in Arizona's Aug. 28 GOP Senate primary.

READ MORE: Trump rally in Phoenix draws Arpaio, Ward

It was widely reported that Ward and Trump spoke briefly at the president's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Dec. 22. But the details of that conversation had not been made public. At the time, a White House aide said the two simply "exchanged pleasantries."

Ward's account suggests Trump held strong opinions about Arizona's 2018 Republican primary lineup and expressed regret for not supporting her during her previous bid for the U.S. Senate, when she was handily defeated by U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in 2016.

Video shows Ward told the audience that while McSally seems to be talking a lot on the campaign trail about her relationship with Trump, she, too, had a story to share.

Ward said she and her husband, Michael, and daughter, Katie, scored an invitation from an associate to have lunch at the resort after attending a political conference. At the resort, that associate introduced her to Trump as "the next senator from the state of Arizona," she told supporters.

"You know, he looks over, and he recognizes — you can see — he was like, 'OK ... Kelli, come, come, come here,' " she recalled. "We go, we get in the shade, I introduce him to Mike and to Katie. We took a few pictures, Katie took a selfie with him. Mike was so flustered, he didn't take a picture.

"... And, he basically knew everything that was going on in Arizona and in the race. He knew. This was before Martha got in, or before Joe got in. You know, he had his opinions, he was like, 'You're up 15 points on Martha, and, you know, Joe shouldn't get in' — he had a few other things to say about that. I'll keep that to myself."

Ward said Trump told her he wanted to endorse her "the last time to get that other guy out. The other guy was a fool."

Trump endorsed McCain over Ward in the 2016 primary, despite his and McCain's long-running feud.

"He said, 'I think if I would've endorsed you, you would have won,' " Ward recounted Trump saying.

READ MORE: Ward takes shots at McCain, McSally at event

Ward said she was "so impressed" by Trump's knowledge of Arizona's political landscape "without a briefing." Anyone questioning Trump's "mental fitness," is "1,000 percent off base."

The White House press office did not respond to The Arizona Republic's request for comment on Ward's account of the conversation.

A full video recording of her remarks during a "People over Politics" event was posted on the group's Facebook page that evening. A previous advertisement about the event showed it was to take place in Chandler.

Eric Beach, Ward's campaign strategist, refused to discuss on Friday Ward's conversation with Trump, even though the candidate herself talked openly about it in her pitch to voters. He added that Ward made the remarks at a "private" event not open to reporters.

"That's a private conversation, and I know there's a video out there and, you know, it could be taken out of context," Beach said. "... I really can't go into details of any private conversations she's had with anybody from the White House or the president or anyone of that nature."

RELATED: Arpaio: Ward's campaign suggested I quit Senate race for pro-Trump gig

Ward's comments at the event came two days after a Republic story detailing her campaign manager's personal requests to Arpaio that he bow out of the Senate race. In exchange, according to Arpaio, Ward's aide told him he could arrange for the former lawman a paid speaking gig with a political action committee supporting Trump's agenda.

Ward's campaign has denied Arpaio's claim.

Arpaio was an early supporter of Trump's presidential campaign. In 2017, Trump pardoned Arpaio, who had been convicted of criminal contempt of court in connection with a federal civil-rights case.

Chad Willems, Arpaio's campaign manager, accused Ward of trying to elbow the former sheriff out of the race "through a fraudulent job offer and threats."

When that didn't work, Willems said, she concocted a tale involving Trump.

"Now, she's claiming President Trump didn't want Arpaio in the race to begin with," Willems wrote in a statement. "This is just more of Kelli Ward’s desperate and delusional tactics that Arizona Republicans have rejected before and will again."

READ MORE: Roberts: Ward trying to muscle Arpaio out

While Ward and Arpaio are tussling over conservative voters, McSally has been pivoting to the right and toward Trump ahead of the primary election. Despite her efforts, McSally, who criticized Trump during the 2016 presidential election, is largely seen as a more moderate candidate backed by the Republican establishment.

The winner of the three-way GOP primary almost certainly will face Democratic U.S. Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, the front-runner for her party's nomination.

READ MORE: Brewer aims to deliver Trump voters for McSally