[2][3] McCain confirmed his decision at a press conference in Phoenix, Arizona, on November 25, 2008, saying, "I intend to run again and will make an announcement at an appropriate time.

"[4] In his appearance, McCain made a point of shifting from discussion of national issues to local ones,[5] and followed up with renewed attention to the state during the next few months.

[4] The person most mentioned as a possible primary challenger was radio talk show host and former U.S. congressman J. D. Hayworth, who was being urged to run by his listeners.

[6] As 2009 progressed, McCain got two announced primary challengers, U.S. Navy veteran and businessman Jim Deakin,[9] and Chris Simcox, the co-founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps.

[10] Simcox's April 2009 announcement of his candidacy garnered a fair amount of press attention; he stated that "John McCain has failed miserably in his duty to secure this nation's borders and protect the people of Arizona from the escalating violence and lawlessness.

Coupled with his votes for reckless bailout spending and big government solutions to our nation's problems, John McCain is out of touch with everyday Arizonans.

[12] A November 2009 Rasmussen Reports poll surprisingly showed that Hayworth was nearly even with McCain among likely Republican Party primary voters in the state.

[19] Hayworth attracted the support of a good number of top-rated radio talk show hosts, including Michael Savage.

[23] Both candidates endorsed Arizona SB 1070, the anti-illegal immigration state law passed in April 2010 that aroused national controversy, and both made tough stands on border control central to their campaigns.

[24] Hayworth's campaign began to struggle when infomercials he had made in 2007 came to light, which had pitched access to free government payment programs from a company that was accused of swindling thousands of people.

[2][56] Napolitano was term-limited as governor in 2010, and had openly discussed the possibility of a Senate race,[2] especially given McCain's 2008 electoral results in the Democratic-trending state.

[4] However, Napolitano was nominated by President-elect Barack Obama to be the new Secretary of Homeland Security on December 1, 2008,[57][58] making it appear unlikely that she would challenge McCain.

[60] Other possible Democratic challengers mentioned included Phoenix mayor Phil Gordon,[4] U.S. Congresswoman Gabby Giffords,[4] and Terry Goddard.