@TonyStark

She has turned out to be a transition vote. We damn sure didn't want Martha McSally and her cardboard cut of Trump.

Ruben Gallego was going to be her primary challenge. She wanted to avoid that.

If the AZGOP runs another Trumper, which if Kelli Ward stays on as their party leader, they will do.

2024 will be a high turnout election, Gallego should go for it and run.

@GoldieAZ Sinema is under water with Ds, Is, and Rs (11/2 poll) and I’m sure she’s seen the writing on the wall, especially after Sen. Kelly’s reelection, who’s been a reliable vote for progressive policy. The Arizona GOP isn’t learning anything and will likely keep on where it is.

Gallego would be an excellent choice for Arizona.

@TonyStark

Yes he would be, and his district is in Maricopa, which means they know of him. It is the most Dem district in AZ.

@GoldieAZ

Gallego sure sounds like he's planning on running.

I am pleased with my representation in the Senate and I hope you will be represented by two reliable Democratic voted after the 2024 election as well. Kelly and Gallego would be a good pair. I hate the idea of losing a woman from the Senate, but only the idea because we need women who is are actual Democrats, not whatever Sinema is.

@TonyStark

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/12/09/sinema-senate-independent-biden-pandemic/#link-E4N27CH5K5BOFF3RI2JPQEXZNE

@MariaHill @TonyStark

Watch was AZGOP does. If they dump Kelli Ward and put in a sane Repub at the helm, they may well run Former Gov Ducey. All the moderate Repubs a Dem needs will vote for him.

@GoldieAZ Ducey didn't want to run last time though. Like Sununu and Hogan, he didn't want any part of the Senate Republican Conference. Every day you'd have to deal with Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz, Ron Johnson, and Rand Paul grandstanding. It's just gotten even worse with JD Vance.

Democrats still have to deal with them from across the aisle, of course, but it wouldn't keep anyone from trying to keep (or regain should we lose) the Democratic majority.

@TonyStark

@MariaHill @TonyStark
It isn't DC as much as it is the state party. The far right took over, that is why Jeff Flake was a one and done.
Kelli Ward, has head of the AZGOP has done more to turn this state blue. It's as if she was working for the AZDem's.

Waiting to see if she is replaced.

@GoldieAZ

Interesting. What looks national can indeed be different factors in each case.

Sununu has a good reason to stay in NH as there is no limitation on the number of terms for governors. He has to run every two years unlike in 48 of 50 states (Vermont is the other with biennial elections), but he's popular so why not keep doing it?

Hogan is a popular Maryland governor. He may have been able to defeat Van Hollen. People know more about their governor, especially their Republican governor who dislikes TFG and got some good media stories for buying covid supplies from South Korea and meeting the plane himself so his cargo couldn't be "seized" by the feds. (FAIR shows that this was a media stunt and Hogan spent money on things that were available in the USA but couldn't be used due to the unavailability of reagents, same as in the other states.) Hogan would surely have looked a lot less shiny if the DSCC put a lot of money into holding Van Hollen's seat.

@TonyStark

@GoldieAZ @MariaHill This is answering a lot of comments that aren’t 100% related to this exact conversation but Sinema’s largest group of favorable ratings comes from Republicans.

If she were to run again as an I, and I’m really wondering about the level of organization she’d need to pull that off there anyway, knowing what an incredible effort it took to get her in the first time by grassroots Dems, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to think she’d pull votes from a Republican candidate.