Staff Reports
Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema announced that she is switching her party affiliation to an independent. This is a gut punch to Democrats who held a super slim margin for control of the Senate.
In an interview with POLITICO, the first-term senator said that she will not be joining the Republican Party. She also indicated that she will continue to vote the same way she has for the past four years.
Over the past four years, I’ve worked proudly with other Senators in both parties and forged consensus on successful laws helping everyday Arizonans build better lives for themselves and their families. 2/3
— Kyrsten Sinema (@kyrstensinema) December 9, 2022
If Sinema continues to follow through on her promise, Democrats will still have a majority in the Senate in the next Congress. They are expected to have the necessary 51 seats to control the Senate. However, it will not be as smooth as they hoped for. One of the senators who will be affected by Sinema’s move is Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who is a crucial swing vote in the Senate.
