As speculation grows about who Vice President Harris will choose as her running mate, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) said he is confident Democrats can retain their Senate seats in a special election if he is selected as vice president.
Kelly told CNN’s Manu Raju on Tuesday that Democrats “understand” tough races like Arizona.
“Democrats are very good at winning statewide elections in Arizona. We understand this,” he said. Said“Our state party is strong and I think it will continue to be successful well into the future.”
“I don’t think it’s going to be an issue,” he continued. “I think there are other Democrats who have great candidates, but this isn’t an issue for me.”
Kelly is said to be high on Harris’ list of potential running mates, and Harris’ campaign has said she will nominate him as her running mate. Before Tuesday.
If Kelly is elected and wins the election, the vacant Senate seat would be filled by a senator pro tempore selected by Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) before the 2026 special election. His term is set to end after the 2028 election.
This situation means that Arizona will have six consecutive two-year senate elections. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) won his last election in 2016, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) was first elected in 2018, followed by Kelly in a special election in 2020 after McCain’s death. Kelly won another full term in 2022, and there is an election this year to replace Sinema, who is retiring.
Democrats have won three elections since McCain’s death in 2018, and Sinema was elected as a Democrat. Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) is the party’s nominee for Senate this year and is currently polling ahead of Republican candidate Kali Lake.
Kelly is seen by political analysts as a strong candidate for vice president because of his reputation as a principled Democrat who can work across party lines and his background as an astronaut. His wife, former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.), who was nearly assassinated while in office, is one of the nation’s leading advocates for gun control.
The senator remains personally popular in Arizona, where he has consistently outperformed President Biden in the past two elections, but progressives have expressed concerns about his record on workers’ rights.
A Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll released Tuesday showed Ms Harris leading former President Trump by two points in Arizona, a significant improvement over Biden’s previous numbers.
