Sen. John McCain’s re-election bid lost its campaign manager and another veteran Republican official, part of a shake-up for the lawmaker from Arizona who is locked in a tight primary race with radio host and former Rep. J.D. Hayworth.
The pair of veteran GOP hands — who started before Mr. Hayworth entered the race — will work instead on the Republican National Committee’s effort in Arizona. Campaign spokesman Brian Rogers said neither Shiree Verdone nor Mike Hellon, a former Arizona GOP chairman, had been fired.
“Senator McCain is very grateful for all that Shiree and Mike have done to launch the re-election campaign and establish it on a firm footing and looks forward to working closely with them for victory in November,” Mr. Rogers said in a statement.
Mr. McCain, his party’s 2008 presidential nominee, drew a challenge for the Aug. 24 Republican primary that has forced him to the right. The one-time champion of a moderate, bipartisan approach to immigration reform now is running ads demanding that Washington finish “the danged fence” he once mocked.
Mr. McCain, who is seeking a fifth term, also has dropped his maverick label.
Mr. Hayworth, who hopes to tap anti-incumbent sentiment in the state, has campaigned against Mr. McCain as a Washington insider who is weak on illegal immigration.
Mr. Rogers said there was no announcement for a replacement at the top of the campaign and added that Mr. McCain’s longtime circle of advisers would continue to shape the campaign.
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