Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R), “who is running for governor in Arkansas, was released from a hospital Saturday after undergoing surgery for thyroid cancer,” the AP reports.

A spokesperson declared her “cancer free.”

“Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge (R) dropped her bid for governor, clearing former White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders’ (R) path to the Republican nomination for the post,” the AP reports.

Associated Press: “Sanders’ celebrity as former President Donald Trump’s spokesperson granted her immediate front-runner status in one of the nation’s most Trump-friendly states. It’s also transforming politics in a place where voters in state races are used to hearing overwhelmingly about Arkansas taxes, Arkansas roads and Arkansas schools.”

“This is hardly the only state where local politics isn’t local anymore. Republican candidates for governor elsewhere also are focused more on President Joe Biden than their own opponents and on federal, rather than state, issues. And many Democrats would rather talk about Trump than about their rivals.”

Said Sanders: “As I travel around the state, I keep hearing this criticism, ‘Oh, there’s that Sarah Sanders, nationalizing the race.’ And my answer to those people is, ‘You bet I am.’ Because if you’re not paying attention to what is happening in this country, you’re missing what is going on.”

Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R), who is running for governor of Arkansas, makes the case for getting vaccinated in an Arkansas Democrat-Gazette op-ed.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) told Fox News that she would not impose any mask mandate or vaccine requirements if she is elected governor of Arkansas in 2022.

Said Sanders: “We believe in personal freedom and responsibility.”

Arkansas Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin (R) announced  that he is departing the governor’s race to run for attorney general, the Arkansas Democrat Gazette reports.

“Griffin’s announcement about his decision to change what office he is seeking in the Republican primary in 2022 comes two weeks after Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R), a former press secretary for the Trump administration, announced her own bid for governor in a campaign video. Former President Donald Trump endorsed Sanders.”

New York Times: “President Trump’s former press secretary has returned to Arkansas a bona fide star eager to play a new role in a post-Trump Republican Party.”

Former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders rolled out a campaign website amid speculation that she is considering a run for Arkansas governor.

“Allies of outgoing White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders commissioned a poll in her native state of Arkansas to test her support against likely primary opponents for a potential gubernatorial race,” sources close to Sanders tell CBS News.

“The results of the poll, conducted several weeks ago, showed Sanders ‘crushing’ any potential Republican rivals, including current Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin who has been eyeing a run.”