US Senator-elect Kyrsten Sinema speaks after being declared the winner Monday in Arizona’s Senate race.
Democrat Kyrsten Sinema, the first openly bisexual person elected to Congress, has defeated Republican Martha McSally to win a US Senate race in Arizona, narrowly flipping a seat long held by Republicans in a come-from-behind victory one week after Election Day.
Despite trailing McSally in early vote returns on election night Tuesday, Sinema steadily gained an advantage over her Republican opponent as votes continued to be counted in subsequent days. By Monday night, the Arizona Secretary of State’s official vote count showed her leading McSally with 49% of the vote, with an advantage of 38,000 votes that would be virtually impossible for the GOP contender to overcome.
It marks the first time Arizona has elected a woman to the Senate in the state’s 106-year history.
In a video posted to Twitter after the race was called Monday, McSally, seated next to her dog, conceded the race and congratulated Sinema on “becoming Arizona’s first female senator after a hard-fought battle.”