Kyrsten Sinema Leaves Democratic Party And Shifts Affiliation To Independent

UPDATED, with Schumer comment: Senator Kyrsten Sinema jolted Democratic hopes of obtaining a clear majority in the next Congress when she announced on Friday that she has switched her party affiliation to independent.

“Like a lot of Arizonans, I have never fit perfectly in either national party,” she wrote in an op ed in the Arizona Republic. “Becoming an independent won’t change my work in the Senate; my service to Arizona remains the same.”

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Sinema’s move comes days after Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) won reelection, giving Democrats a 51-49 majority. Sinema told Politico that she does not plan to caucus with Republicans. Democrats count two independents as part of their caucus — Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Senator Angus King of Maine — and Sinema plans to maintain her committee assignments controlled by the party. Even without her vote, the Senate would be tied, leaving it to Vice President Kamala Harris to break it.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement, “She asked me to keep her committee assignments and I agreed. Kyrsten is independent; that’s how she’s always been. I believe she’s a good and effective Senator and am looking forward to a productive session in the new Democratic majority Senate. We will maintain our new majority on committees, exercise our subpoena power, and be able to clear nominees without discharge votes.”

In an exclusive interview on Thursday in her Senate office, Sinema told CNN’s Jake Tapper, “I’ve never fit neatly into any party box. I’ve never really tried. I don’t want to. Removing myself from the partisan structure – not only is it true to who I am and how I operate, I also think it’ll provide a place of belonging for many folks across the state and the country, who also are tired of the partisanship.”

Sinema has not said whether she plans to seek reelection in 2024, and some Democrats have floated the idea of running a primary challenge. During the current Congress, with the Senate tied, she and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) have had extraordinary influence as the party leadership has tried to round up votes on key parts of President Joe Biden’s agenda. Sinema opposed key parts of a massive social and climate bill that passed the House and, when it was dramatically scaled back as the Inflation Reduction Act, insisted on key changes before throwing her support behind it.

“Arizonans – including many registered as Democrats or Republicans – are eager for leaders who focus on common-sense solutions rather than party doctrine,” Sinema wrote.

“But if the loudest, most extreme voices continue to drive each party toward the fringes – and if party leaders stay more focused on energizing their bases than delivering for all Americans – these kinds of lasting legislative successes will become rarer.”

Sinema, a former member of the Green Party, later switched her affiliation to the Democratic party and won election to the U.S. House in 2012. She was elected to the Senate in 2018 in a narrow victory over Republican Martha McSally.

Manchin faces reelection in 2024 as well, but unlike Sinema’s Arizona, which has become a presidential swing state in recent years, West Virginia has been won by the Republican nominee every cycle since 2000.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement, “We understand that her decision to register as an independent in Arizona does not change the new Democratic majority control of the Senate, and we have every reason to expect that we will continue to work successfully with her.” Jean-Pierre noted that Sinema backed some other major parts of Biden’s agenda, including the American Rescue Plan, the infrastructure law, a gun reform bill, as well as the Respect for Marriage Act, which cleared Congress on Thursday.

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