John McCain loses 1982 AZ-01 primary

Yes, we all know how he beat accusations of "carpetbagging" by saying he had lived in Hanoi longer than anywhere else...But the fact remains that his victory in the primary was a close one:

Arizona's 1st congressional district, 1982 (Republican primary):

John McCain - 15,363 (31.83%)
Ray Russell - 12,500 (25.89%)
James A. Mack - 10,675 (22.11%)
Donna Carlson-West - 9,736 (20.17%)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_history_of_John_McCain

"McCain's strategy for winning the primary focused primarily on Scottsdale. Mack, Carlson-West and Russell's stomping grounds were Mesa and Tempe. Much to McCain's surprise, the popular longtime Scottsdale Mayor Herb Drinkwater immediately embraced his candidacy. The mayor lined up support from the rest of the City Council and other Scottsdale community leaders."

http://archive.azcentral.com/news/e...es/2007/03/01/20070301mccainbio-chapter5.html

POD: Drinkwater backs one of the other candidates, who goes on to defeat McCain in the primary. Does McCain still become a senator?
 
McCain is nothing if stubborn, I doubt one loss will be enough to keep him out of politics (especially if it is a narrow one). I'm less certain about his future going forward. The 1st was pretty Republican (I doubt McCain winning almost 2/3rd of the vote that year was a solely personal vote). He could challenge whoever beat him in 1982, but it would be rather hard to beat an incumbent in a primary unless they massively fuck up.

Maybe he sits out 1984 and tries to run for Governor in 1986? He'd do a significantly better job then Mecham in the general and as Govenror, if he beat him of course. Of course no Mecham could influence Bill Schulz not to run as an Independent.

And, of course, there's nothing to stop McCain from running for Senator in 1986 either. Sure he doesn't have the 4 years as a House member, but neither did Goldwater when he first ran for Senator. If he gets the nomination, I think he's got a fairly good chance of winning as in OTL; unless of course someone like Bruce Babbitt (finishing off his 2+ terms as Govenror) runs.
 
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