Former President Barack Obama rallies voters at Phoenix High School

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) — Arizona’s high-stakes midterm elections are just six days away, and both parties are making final pushes for their campaigns. Former President Barack Obama spoke at a rally at a Phoenix high school Wednesday night, urging voters to turn in their ballots.

A large crowd gathered at Cesar Chavez High School and many stopped by to catch a glimpse of the former president. Obama campaigned for several Arizona Democratic candidates, including gubernatorial nominee Katie Hobbs and Senate candidate Mark Kelly. “If you need another reason to vote, consider the fact that our democracy is on the ballot, and nowhere is that more evident than here in Arizona,” Obama said.

Several Democratic candidates running for office spoke at the event and even a GOP speaker. The only Republican official in attendance was Mesa Mayor John Giles, who said he could not support Republicans here in Arizona because of their beliefs and denial of the 2020 election.

The former president agreed with Giles’ point and talked about the differences between Republicans and Democrats running in the midterms. Obama said voters shouldn’t elect people who push conspiracies and are OK with masked and armed people watching voters return to their primary ballots. “If we hadn’t just picked someone whose main qualifications were being on TV, you could see that maybe he would have been given a shot. What’s the worst that could happen? Now we know it just doesn’t work because someone has been on TV,” he said, drawing applause from the crowd.

Aside from politics, Obama started the night talking basketball, acknowledging the rumors of his name being floated to potentially be part of a group to buy the Phoenix Suns. He said he wasn’t aware he was a buyer, but said the team was very good.

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