Marine Veteran Ruben Gallego Defeats Trump Ally Kari Lake, Becomes Arizona's First Latino Senator

Nov 12, 2024, 05:05 AM

Democrat Ruben Gallego, a Marine and Iraq War veteran as well as a five-term House member, has been elected to the U.S. Senate from Arizona, defeating Republican Kari Lake in the race for the open seat previously held by Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat-turned-independent. Gallego's victory makes him Arizona's first Latino U.S. senator. The Associated Press called the race on November 12, 2024, after Gallego maintained a lead of over 72,000 votes with 95% of the votes counted, securing approximately 50% of the vote to Lake's 48%. Kari Lake, a former Fox News anchor, Trump ally, and noted election denier, has now lost her second consecutive statewide election in Arizona, following her gubernatorial defeat in 2022. Despite Donald Trump's victory in Arizona, Gallego's win is a significant achievement for Democrats in the state.