Kyrsten Sinema

Kyrsten Sinema
Name	Kyrsten Sinema
Caption	Official portrait, 2022
State	Arizona
Jr/sr	United States Senator
Alongside	Mark Kelly
Term start	January 3, 2019
Predecessor	Jeff Flake
State1	Arizona
District1	9th
Term start1	January 3, 2013
Term end1	January 3, 2019
Predecessor1	District created
Successor1	Greg Stanton
State house2	Arizona
District2	15th
Term start2	January 2005
Term end2	January 2011
Predecessor2	Warde Nichols
Successor2	John Fillmore
State senate3	Arizona
District3	15th
Term start3	January 2011
Term end3	January 2013
Predecessor3	Ken Cheuvront
Successor3	Nancy Barto
Birth date	12 July 1976
Birth place	Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Party	Independent (2022–present)
Otherparty	Democratic (before 2022)
Education	Brigham Young University (BA), Arizona State University (MSW, JD)
Website	sinema.senate.gov

Kyrsten Sinema is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Arizona since 2019. A former member of the Democratic Party, she became an political independent in December 2022. Throughout her career in the U.S. House and Senate, Sinema has cultivated a reputation as a centrist dealmaker, often playing a pivotal role in negotiations on major legislation.

Early life and education

Born in Tucson, Arizona, she experienced periods of homelessness during her childhood before her family settled in Deer Valley. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from Brigham Young University, followed by a Master of Social Work and a Juris Doctor from Arizona State University. Before entering politics, she worked as a social worker and later taught at the Arizona State University College of Law.

Early career

Her political activism began with the Arizona Green Party and she served as a spokesperson for the Ralph Nader presidential campaign in 2000. She later transitioned to the Democratic Party, winning election to the Arizona House of Representatives in 2004. In the Arizona Legislature, she represented parts of Phoenix and focused on issues like LGBTQ+ rights and education funding.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elected to the newly created Arizona's 9th congressional district in 2012, she served three terms in the United States House of Representatives. In the 113th Congress, she was a member of the Blue Dog Coalition and served on the House Financial Services Committee. She was known for a bipartisan voting record and was a founding co-chair of the United States Congressional NextGen 9-1-1 Caucus.

U.S. Senate

She defeated Republican nominee Martha McSally in the 2018 election to succeed retiring Senator Jeff Flake. Her victory made her the first openly bisexual member of the United States Senate. In the closely divided 117th United States Congress, her vote was often critical, influencing major bills like the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Her opposition to altering the filibuster in the Senate shaped the fate of voting rights legislation. In December 2022, she announced her departure from the Democratic Party to register as an Independent.

Political positions

She is considered a centrist or moderate politician, emphasizing fiscal restraint and bipartisan compromise. She has supported progressive causes like the Equality Act and DREAM Act, but also broken with her party on issues like the federal minimum wage increase during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her stance on preserving the legislative filibuster has drawn criticism from many Democratic colleagues. She played a key role in negotiating the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.

Electoral history

Her first federal election victory was for the Arizona's 9th congressional district in 2012, defeating Republican Vernon Parker. She won re-election in 2014 and 2016. In the 2018 U.S. Senate election, she defeated Martha McSally by a narrow margin. She was not a candidate in the 2024 election to succeed herself.

Category:Members of the United States Senate from Arizona Category:American women lawyers Category:21st-century American politicians