Ruben Gallego easily wins bid for 3rd term

U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego will breeze to a third term in Washington.

Unofficial results Tuesday show he easily defeated state Sen. Catherine Miranda to win the Democratic nomination in the 7th Congressional District.

Republicans have already written off the district, where Democrats have a 31-percentage point registration advantage, their largest in the state. No one qualified for the primary from the GOP.

For Gallego, the primary win validates his outspoken political style.

Last year, he didn’t back fellow Democrat Nancy Pelosi to be House speaker and he briefly “adopted” the 2nd District represented by Republican U.S. Rep. Martha McSally for a town hall to discuss health care.

He has also been one of the most vocal critics of President Donald Trump on CNN and on social media.

Miranda, a veteran state senator who was raised in the district, tried to offer a more moderate alternative to Gallego.

To many at the statehouse, Miranda is remembered for helping Republican Gov. Doug Ducey pass his first budget and switching her view on abortion rights, now holding a more restrictive position.

She argued her more moderate political leanings were a better fit in Washington, where partisan gridlock has gripped Congress for at least a decade.

Miranda said education reforms would be her priority in Congress. She said her first step would be to request a meeting with Betsy DeVos, Trump’s Education Department secretary. DeVos supports alternatives to public district schools, something Miranda has called an “attack” on public education.

Instead, Gallego’s message about prioritizing legal protections for those who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children, better managing health-care costs, tackling student-loan debt and increasing the minimum wage carried the night.

Gallego’s win seemed inevitable. Miranda raised $28,000 through June. Gallego had taken in $837,000 as of earlier this month.

Gallego, who won his second term by 50 percentage points, is a Chicago native and a Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq and served in the statehouse.

The district runs from southern Glendale to downtown Phoenix and reaches to South Mountain Park.