Kyrsten Sinema wins Arizona Senate. Now Dems have 47 seats to GOP's 51.
Kyrsten Sinema, the apparent winner in Arizona's Senate race, is the first Democrat to win that vote for decades.
She will become the first woman to ever represent Arizona in the U.S. Senate.
She is also the first openly bisexual person ever elected to the U.S. Senate.
That's a lot of firsts.
Sinema's win was called late in the day by Associated Press on Monday November 12. Election day was Tuesday, November 6. She gave a speech accepting the win around 830pm Eastern time. Here's a screengrab.
via Facebook
Democrats now control 47 Senate seats. Republicans control 51. At least 2 races have not yet been called.
Sinema, 42, faced a contentious race as a centrist Democrat candidate running against Republican Martha McSally.
She will assume the seat being vacated by Jeff Flake.
Here is Martha McSally's concession.
Congrats to @kyrstensinema. I wish her success. I'm grateful to all those who supported me in this journey. I'm inspired by Arizonans' spirit and our state's best days are ahead of us. pic.twitter.com/tw0uKgi3oO
- McSally For Senate (@MarthaMcSally) November 13, 2018
From the New York Times:
Ms. Sinema's victory over Martha McSally, a Republican congresswoman and former Air Force pilot, marks the first Democratic triumph since 1976 in a battle for an open Senate seat in Arizona. Ms. Sinema takes the seat being vacated by Jeff Flake, a Republican who retired after publicly clashing with President Trump.
Ms. Sinema's victory guarantees the Democrats at least 47 Senate seats. Republicans control 51, with two still undecided: Florida, where there is a recount, and Mississippi, where there is a runoff.
The win by Ms. Sinema points to a remarkable shift in Arizona's political landscape. That state has been a Republican bastion for decades, but Democrats are seizing on dissatisfaction with budget cuts and growing unease over the Trump administration's immigration crackdown to make inroads with moderate voters.
Voter drives to register more Latinos, who generally vote Democratic in Arizona, appear to have paid off for Ms. Sinema. About 2.1 million Latinos live in Arizona, about a third of the state's population; while Mr. Trump narrowly carried the state in the 2016 election, many Latinos in the state have expressed displeasure with the president.
As long as I've served Arizona, I've worked to help others see our common humanity & find common ground. That's the same approach I'll take to representing our great state in the Senate, where I'll be an independent voice for all Arizonans.
Thank you, Arizona. Let's get to work. pic.twitter.com/iX6u6VQ9bQ
- Kyrsten Sinema (@kyrstensinema) November 13, 2018
BREAKING: Democrat Kyrsten Sinema wins election to U.S. Senate from Arizona. #APracecall at 5:41 p.m. MST. @AP election coverage: https://t.co/miEWlbTVZW #Election2018 #AZelection
- AP Politics (@AP_Politics) November 13, 2018
HAPPENING NOW:@kyrstensinema expected to address supporters after she's declared the winner of the #AZSenate race.
She is the first female U.S senator in the state's history & first Democrat since 1994. pic.twitter.com/EZgZS7b1LA- Zach Crenshaw ABC15 (@ZachCrenshaw) November 13, 2018
Dems picked up two Senate seats as a byproduct of Trump's actions: Jones in Alabama, taking Sessions' seat and Sinema in Arizona after Flake bowed out rightfully thinking he wouldn't make it through a primary
- Gideon Resnick (@GideonResnick) November 13, 2018
Democrat Kyrsten Sinema has won Arizona's open U.S. Senate seat in a race that was among the most closely watched in the nation. https://t.co/G1BZEaRSAs
- The Associated Press (@AP) November 13, 2018
Sinema is first woman to be elected to represent Arizona in US Senate and is the first Democrat to win Senate seat in AZ since Dennis DeConcini in 1988.
- Craig Caplan (@CraigCaplan) November 13, 2018
Congratulations, @kyrstensinema! #RainbowWave https://t.co/fDSg8yNaUP pic.twitter.com/o5868jcMeF
- The Advocate (@TheAdvocateMag) November 13, 2018
Democratic Rep. Kyrsten Sinema will win Arizona's US Senate race, defeating Republican Rep. Martha McSally and flipping a seat that had been in GOP hands for 24 years https://t.co/qJ3VrOHMnM pic.twitter.com/uQ11YXHZVV
- CNN (@CNN) November 13, 2018