Former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders reportedly appeared at a weekend retreat organized by the Republican Governors Association (RGA), further stoking speculation she may launch a gubernatorial bid in Arkansas in 2022.
According to Politico, Sanders attended a Sunday dinner put on by the family of the late Fred Malek, who once served as finance chairman of the RGA. Malek was also the president of Marriott Hotels as well as an assistant to Presidents Richard Nixon and George H.W. Bush. The retreat will take place over two days in Aspen, Colorado.
Last month, President Donald Trump urged Sanders to run for governor in her home state while announcing her departure from the White House. “She is a very special person with extraordinary talents, who has done an incredible job!” the president wrote on Twitter. “I hope she decides to run for Governor of Arkansas – she would be fantastic. Sarah, thank you for a job well done!”
Sanders has yet to comment on whether she will run for the highest office in the Natural State. Her father, former Republican Arkansas Mike Huckabee, has said his daughter is in no rush to decide on her next steps.
Huckabee told radio host Hugh Hewett:
She doesn’t know. I mean, that’s the honest answer. The truth is, she has not had time to come up for air in the past three years. So she’s going to take some time to get her kids enrolled in school in Arkansas for the fall, go to vacation, just have some downtime — which is something she hasn’t done. And, you know, then she’ll start exploring.