 A November 2009 Rasmussen Reports poll had surprisingly shown that former Congressman J. D. Hayworth was nearly even with McCain among likely Republican Party primary voters in the state, indicating that a primary challenge might be a serious danger to McCain.Hayworth's February 2010 declaration of entry into the Arizona senate led Simcox to drop his campaign and endorse Hayworth, saying that he wanted to present a united conservative front against McCain.The primary challenge helped account for McCain's sometimes awkward reversals or mutings of past stances on issues such as the bank bailouts, national security, campaign finance reform, creation of a national debt commission, and gays in the military.