Arizona Races Reflect Difference Between Republicans, Democrats
If you want to see a really exciting ballot race this year, come on down to Maricopa County, Arizona, the fastest growing place in America, and watch the Democrats and Republicans bounce each other around.
First, there is the U.S. Senate race, with former astronaut Mark Kelly, a Democrat, duking it out with appointed Republican incumbent Martha McSally. Kelley is doing fantastically in fund raising. In the past quarter, he raised $11 million, meaning he has over $19 million on hand. This compares with $6.3 million for McSally in the quarter, with just over $11 million on hand. The polls show Kelley outpacing McSally, too. For example, the Arizona Public Opinion people had him up by 10 points.
Of course, things can change. Perhaps President Donald Trump, who carried the state in 2016, can carry McSally along. But Stuart Rothenberg of The Hill wrote recently that it’s not as easy as that. Maricopa County – with Phoenix and its ’burbs – counts for a huge share of Arizona’s vote. Coupled with Pima County (Tucson), Trump would have to do remarkably well in the other 13 counties of the state to do just as well as he did in 2016, when he won by just 3.5%. Compare that with Bush or Romney or the state’s own John McCain and factor in brand new native and Hispanic voters and the top of the ticket is iffy.
Democrats in the Grand Canyon state were delighted to win major offices recently. A U.S. Senate seat (Kristen Sinema beat McSally), two statewide offices, and a slight majority in the House of Representatives. Gov. Doug Ducey won re-election in 2018 with 56% of the vote. The Democrat got 41.8%. Ducey will not be on the ballot this fall.
The Republicans who run the legislature have been doing everything to suppress Democratic voting, including making it a felony to carry a sick neighbor’s mail-in ballot to the polls. Who knows whether COVID-19 will frighten some voters away or whether people will be so mad that they were out of work and cooped up at home that they’ll vote at any cost?
That’s why watching the Arizona races is particularly fun for political junkies.
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