Sinema welcomes Kelly to Senate after his victory
Two years ago, Democrat Kyrsten Sinema beat Republican challenger Martha McSally in a competitive race for one of Arizona’s U.S. Senate seats, a race that turned nasty in its final days as McSally accused Sinema of supporting “treason.”
Now, Sinema is welcoming Senatorelect Mark Kelly to the Senate after he defeated McSally on Tuesday night in the special election to fill the remainder of the term won in 2016 by the late Sen. John McCain.
After losing her race to Sinema in 2018, she was appointed to the state’s other Senate seat before voters again rejected her.
McSally becomes the first Republican in two consecutive cycles to lose both Senate seats in Arizona in modern history.
The Associated Press called the race for Kelly at 12:51 a.m. Wednesday.
Sinema and Kelly will serve alongside each other in the legislative chamber, marking the first time Arizona had two Democratic senators since 1953.
“Continuing a long tradition, Arizonans again chose independent leadership in electing our new U.S. Senator.” Sinema said in a written statement. “I congratulate Mark on his victory and on the campaign he ran — a campaign focused on issues that matter to Arizonans and how to get results for our state, rejecting the petty politics of name-calling and false personal attacks.
“I am confident Mark will uphold the Arizona values of seeking common ground and putting country above party. I look forward to partnering with him to cut through Washington dysfunction to deliver for everyday Arizonans, and I thank Martha McSally for her service.”
Sinema worked to help Kelly as he sought to unseat McSally. She cut a blistering TV ad against McSally for misleading Arizonans about her record on health care and helped Kelly raise money.
Because the Arizona race is a special election, Kelly, D-Ariz., is expected to be sworn in as soon as Nov. 30, after the state certifies its election results.
Behind the scenes, Kelly’s campaign will likely focus on transitioning to the Senate.
Political analysts in Arizona anticipate he will draw from the tight-knit team of advisers who have worked with his campaign and his wife’s campaigns and congressional office.