Democrat Ruben Gallego has claimed the open Senate seat in Arizona, defeating Republican opponent Kari Lake, the Associated Press reported Tuesday.
As the race was called in his favor, Gallego, a five-term congressman and Marine veteran, took to the stage in Phoenix late Monday to declare victory as the state’s first Latino senator.
“Gracias, Arizona!” Gallego later wrote on the social platform X.
According to unofficial election results from the office of Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, Gallego secured 1.6 million votes, for 50 percent of the vote share, to Kari’s 1.52 million votes, or 47.7 percent.
Gallego is an Iraq War veteran who made his life story feature prominently in his public appearances and ads.
He will replace Kyrsten Sinema, whose 2018 victory as a Democrat created a formula the party has sought to replicate ever since, the AP report notes.
After Gallego’s win, Democrats will have 47 seats in the 100-member Senate, versus the Republicans 52, erasing Democrats’ previous majority in the chamber.
Republicans flipped Democratic-controlled Senate seats in West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Montana.
In the latter three cases, defeated senators Sherrod Brown, Bob Casey and Jon Tester all polled ahead of Harris but couldn’t overcome their states’ shifts toward the Republicans.
Democrat Ruben Gallego’s victory marks the final Senate race call of the 2024 elections.
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