Mark Kelly endorses Ruben Gallego for US Senate after Kyrsten Sinema bows out

U.S. Senate candidate Ruben Gallego picked up the formal endorsement Wednesday of Sen. Mark Kelly, swiftly consolidating much of the Democratic support behind a candidacy notably lacking it until Sen. Kyrsten Sinema formally dropped out.

Kelly, D-Ariz., brings perhaps the most coveted endorsement in Arizona politics as a sitting senator with appeal to independents and a record of recent success with the state’s voters. He also could help Gallego tap into Kelly’s vast donor network that has made him one of the most prolific fundraisers in the Senate.

Gallego is running for the seat held by Sinema, I-Ariz., who announced Tuesday she would not seek a second term. Republicans Kari Lake and Mark Lamb are also challenging for the seat.

“Ruben is, like me, a combat veteran. We’ve worked together on so many different issues. We’re both on Armed Services, so we both work together on a lot of veterans’ and military issues regarding the bases in Arizona,” Kelly said in an interview with The Arizona Republic.

“And then when you consider the other option. I can’t stress how strongly I feel that Kari Lake is the wrong answer, not only for the United States Senate, but for any elected position in any state in any country. She is a danger to democracy.”

Gallego also picked up the support Wednesday of Kelly's wife, former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz. She thanked him for his service in the Marine Corps and in Congress.

“He has consistently put country above self and party. I look forward to working tirelessly to help him win in November,” she said in a statement.

Gallego welcomed the support and highlighted said his background as a Chicago native and Kelly’s New Jersey roots have shaped them both.

“Mark and I both come from working class backgrounds so we both understand the value of a dollar and the dignity of work,” Gallego said. “It’s going to be great to have two people in the Senate who understand that. And of course, as combat veterans, we understand the importance of what they need when they go to war, but also what they need when they return to their families.”

Senate race: Lake picks up support from a Senate GOP leader as Democrats get behind Gallego

Sinema’s retirement came as she was running a distant third in polling and her fundraising had plummeted since she quit the Democratic Party in December 2022. But in a closely divided chamber that still depended on her votes, Senate Democrats withheld their formal backing for Gallego.

That has changed quickly after Sinema’s announcement.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Tuesday he is “fully behind” Gallego’s candidacy.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee issued a statement the same day saying it is “working tirelessly to defeat Kari Lake and ensure Democrats win Arizona’s Senate seat in 2024 by electing Ruben Gallego.”

Kelly said he plans to be on the campaign trail with Gallego as much as their schedules allow.

Kelly’s support for Gallego comes after Gallego supported Kelly’s first run in 2020, when Gallego considered making a Senate run of his own.

At the time, Gallego’s popularity with more progressive groups in the Democratic Party helped Kelly, who was running as a centrist Democrat. In particular, Gallego appealed to Latino voters.

Now, it is Kelly who hopes to warm Arizona’s independents to Gallego.

“The message to Arizonans loud and clear – they’re certainly going to hear it from me – is Ruben is all about bringing people together to solve problems, and his opponent is all about dividing people. She showed that in her race for governor. When you’re a Republican running for governor and you’re kicking John McCain supporters out of the room weeks before an election? That’s not somebody who intends to work across the aisle to get things done to help the state of Arizona.”

Gallego noted that Lake could have shown some movement to the middle by supporting the bipartisan border security bill negotiated by Sinema, as he and Kelly did.

“Without reading it, she just outright rejected it,” Gallego said, adding that the bill didn’t include everything he or Kelly wanted, but it was to them a step forward. “That tells you how she is going to be.”

Kelly also has an enviable support network that could boost Gallego’s already-solid fundraising. He said he has already asked them to back Gallego now.

Kelly’s 2020 and 2022 campaigns brought in a combined $194 million over two political cycles. So far, Gallego has brought in more than $13 million, which was more than double what Sinema had raised over 2023.

Lake raised $2 million in her first quarter in the race last year and has already secured the endorsement of nearly all the Republican leadership even though she is in a primary against Lamb.

Both parties and independent groups are expected to pour tens of millions more into the race, especially in summer and fall.

While Gallego embraces Kelly’s support, it is unclear how closely he will work with President Joe Biden’s parallel reelection campaign.

Biden remains deeply unpopular with Arizona voters, according to polling.

Gallego has notably criticized the Biden administration over its handling of the border with Mexico and offered tepid support for his party’s presumptive nominee in an interview with Channel 3’s “Politics Unplugged” earlier this year.

“Look, I’m a Democrat,” Gallego said. “You know, we’re going to make sure we get out the vote, and at the end of the day, when I win the Democratic nomination, I will be with our Democratic nominee, and that’s going to be Joe Biden.”

Arizona once again figures to be a critical presidential battleground state. Biden won the state in 2020 by the narrowest margin in the country. First lady Jill Biden visited Tucson last week in another sign of the state’s election-year significance.

Arizona once again figures to be a critical presidential battleground state. Biden won the state in 2020 by the narrowest margin in the country. First lady Jill Biden visited Tucson last week in another sign of the state’s election-year significance.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Sen. Mark Kelly endorses Ruben Gallego in Arizona Senate race