Democrat Kyrsten Sinema wins race in Arizona Senate and overthrows his second GOP seat: NPR

Democrat Kyrsten Sinema is expected to win the Arizona Senate race, according to the Associated Press.

Christian Petersen / Getty Images

hide the legend

activate the legend

Christian Petersen / Getty Images

Democrat Kyrsten Sinema is expected to win the Arizona Senate race, according to the Associated Press.

Christian Petersen / Getty Images

Updated at 20:40 ET

Democrat Kyrsten Sinema beat Republican Martha McSally to win the Arizona Senate race, the Associated Press announced Monday night.

With Sinema's victory in overthrowing the seat of outgoing Senator GOP, Jeff Flake, she becomes the first Democrat to be elected to the Senate since 1988. She will be not only the first woman senator of the state, but also the first senator openly bisexual Our story.

Shortly after the call of the race in her favor, Sinema wrote on Twitter that she "will be an independent voice for all Arizona."

McSally also posted a video saying that she had called Sinema to congratulate her.

McSally could still become a senator. An Arizona Republic editorial on Monday urged Republican Governor Doug Ducey to name McSally at the other Arizona headquarters. Former GOP Senator Jon Kyl was appointed to fill the vacancy following the death of Senator John McCain earlier this year, but if Kyl pulled out, Ducey would have to appoint another Republican to replace him. This person should run for a special election in 2020 before standing for a full term in 2022.

For now, victory in Arizona means that Democrats have reduced GOP gains in the Senate to one seat so far. Republicans have beaten North Dakota, Indiana and Missouri, but Democrats have overthrown their seats in Nevada and Arizona. There are two special races, including Florida, where a recount is underway to determine whether Republican Gov. Rick Scott's leadership over Democratic Senator Bill Nelson will be maintained.

The Mississippi Senate race will be decided by a second round on November 27 and was turned upside down by the video after Sunday's broadcast of GOP Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith's video about a "public hanging". Mississippi is a state with a dark history of racial violence, including lynchings, and Hyde-Smith's Democratic opponent, Mike Espy, is African-American.

The victory of the Democrats in Arizona means that they were able to extend their reach into a traditionally red territory – which they had done in the House last week by overthrowing the control of the chamber, but they did not. Have not yet done in the Senate. President Trump won Arizona by 4 points in 2016.

The campaign between the two women of Congress was a bitter race that took almost a week to decide, with postal ballots always counted. But in recent days, Sinema 's advance has continued to grow.

Sinema, a member of the Blue Dog caucus in the House, had campaigned as a moderate. But Republicans had struck her in her more liberal past when she was a state legislator, especially for her anti-war stances and past protests.

Colonel of the retired Air Force who wrote history as the first woman to take the plane into combat, McSally had to first survive a primordial conservative challenge. This forced him to move to the right, especially in matters of immigration. Formerly a Trump critic, McSally joined the president in this contest.