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2020 United States Senate special election in Arizona
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The 2020 United States Senate special election in Arizona was held on November 3, 2020, following the death in office of incumbent Republican U.S. Senator John McCain on August 25, 2018. Governor Doug Ducey was required by Arizona law to appoint a Republican to fill the vacant seat until a special election winner could be sworn in.[1][2] On September 5, 2018, Ducey appointed former U.S. Senator Jon Kyl to fill McCain's seat. However, Kyl announced he would resign on December 31, 2018.[3]
On December 18, 2018, Ducey announced that outgoing U.S. Representative Martha McSally would be appointed to fill the seat following Kyl's resignation.[4] McSally was sworn in as the state's junior U.S. Senator on January 3, 2019, less than two months after she was defeated by Democrat Kyrsten Sinema for Arizona's Class 1 U.S. Senate seat.[5] McSally ran to complete the term, defeating skincare executive Daniel McCarthy in the Republican primary. She faced former astronaut Mark Kelly,[6] who ran uncontested in the Democratic primary. Primary elections took place on August 4, 2020.[7]
Once a reliably Republican state, Arizona trended more purple in the late 2010s. Kelly significantly outraised McSally and led by about 5% in the average poll leading up to Election Day.
Kelly defeated McSally by a margin of 2.4% on election night, thereby flipping the seat Democratic. As a result, he outperformed Joe Biden in the concurrent presidential election, who defeated President Donald Trump by a margin of 0.3% in the state, but underperformed his polling average. Kelly became the first Democrat to win the Class 3 Senate seat since Carl Hayden won his last term in 1962.[8]
Kelly was sworn in on December 2, 2020, marking the first time since 1953 that Democrats held both of Arizona’s Senate seats.
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Interim appointments
Appointees
- Jon Kyl, former U.S. senator, former U.S. Representative for Arizona's 4th congressional district and former Senate Minority Whip, resigned December 31, 2018[4][9]
- Martha McSally, former U.S. representative for Arizona's 2nd congressional district, 2018 Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, assumed office January 3, 2019[10]
Potential candidates not appointed
- Kirk Adams, incumbent chief of staff to incumbent governor of Arizona Doug Ducey and former speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives[11]
- Barbara Barrett, Secretary of the Air Force and former United States Ambassador to Finland[11]
- Jan Brewer, former governor of Arizona and former secretary of state of Arizona[12]
- Paul Gosar, incumbent U.S. representative for Arizona's 4th congressional district[13]
- Eileen Klein, former treasurer of Arizona and former chief of staff to former governor of Arizona Jan Brewer[11]
- Cindy McCain, widow of former U.S. senator John McCain[11]
- Meghan McCain, daughter of former U.S. senator John McCain[14]
- Mick McGuire, incumbent adjutant general of the Arizona National Guard[13]
- Karrin Taylor Robson, businesswoman and incumbent member of the Arizona Board of Regents[11]
- Matt Salmon, former U.S. representative, 2002 gubernatorial nominee and former chairperson of the Arizona Republican Party[11]
- David Schweikert, incumbent U.S. representative for Arizona's 6th congressional district[15]
- John Shadegg, former U.S. representative for Arizona's 3rd congressional district[11]
- Kelli Ward, former candidate for U.S. Senate in 2016 and 2018[13]
- Grant Woods, former Republican Arizona Attorney General and former congressional chief of staff to former U.S. senator John McCain[13]
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Republican primary
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Incumbent McSally faced one challenger: Daniel McCarthy, a skincare company executive. McCarthy's independent wealth was expected to set up a bruising and expensive primary campaign; however, McSally won the primary in a landslide.[16]
Candidates
Nominee
- Martha McSally, incumbent U.S. senator and former U.S. Representative for Arizona's 2nd congressional district[17][18]
Eliminated in primary
Withdrawn
Declined
- Kirk Adams, incumbent chief of staff to incumbent governor of Arizona Doug Ducey and former Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives[27]
- Joe Arpaio, former Sheriff of Maricopa County and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2018 (running for Maricopa County Sheriff)[28][29]
- Doug Ducey, governor of Arizona[30]
- Paul Gosar, U.S. representative for Arizona's 4th congressional district[31] (ran for re-election)
- Jon Kyl, former U.S. senator, former U.S. Representative for Arizona's 4th congressional district and former Senate Minority Whip[9][32][33]
- Blake Masters, president of the Thiel Foundation[34][35]
- Curt Schilling, former Major League Baseball player and Blaze Media commentator[36]
- Fife Symington, former governor of Arizona[37][38]
Endorsements
Martha McSally
U.S. presidents
- George W. Bush, 43rd president of the United States[39]
- Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States[40]
State officials
- Doug Ducey, Governor of Arizona (2015–2023)[41]
Individuals
- Buzz Aldrin, U.S. astronaut[42]
Organizations
- Campaign for Working Families[43]
- Huck PAC[44]
- Maggie's List[45]
- Republican Jewish Coalition[46]
- Susan B. Anthony List[47]
Primary results

McSally—80–90%
McSally—70–80%
McSally—60–70%
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Democratic primary
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Candidates
Nominee
- Mark Kelly, retired astronaut, engineer, retired U.S. Navy captain, husband of former U.S. Representative Gabby Giffords[49]
Eliminated in primary
- Bo "Heir Archy" Garcia (as a write-in candidate)[19]
Withdrew
- Mohammad Arif, businessman and perennial candidate (write-in)[50] (switched to Democratic general election write-in candidacy)[51]
- Sheila Bilyeu, Democratic candidate for the 2020 United States Senate election in Oklahoma[52]
- Juan Angel Vasquez[53]
Declined
- Ruben Gallego, incumbent U.S. representative for Arizona's 7th congressional district (running for re-election) (endorsed Mark Kelly)[54]
- Katie Hobbs, Secretary of State of Arizona[55]
- Grant Woods, former Republican Arizona Attorney General and former congressional chief of staff to former U.S. senator John McCain[56]
Endorsements
Mark Kelly (D)
U.S. presidents
- Barack Obama, 44th president of the United States[57]
U.S. senators
- Kamala Harris, U.S. senator from California[58]
- Amy Klobuchar, U.S. senator from Minnesota[59]
- Kyrsten Sinema, U.S. senator from Arizona[60]
U.S. representatives
- Ruben Gallego, U.S. representative (AZ-07)[54]
Organizations
- 314 Action[61]
- Brady Campaign[62]
- Coalition to Stop Gun Violence[63]
- Council for a Livable World[64]
- Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee[65]
- End Citizens United[66]
- Everytown for Gun Safety[67]
- Feminist Majority PAC[68]
- High School Democrats of America[69]
- Human Rights Campaign[70]
- Joint Action Committee for Political Affairs[71]
- League of Conservation Voters[72]
- NARAL Pro-Choice America[73]
- National Organization for Women[74]
- Planned Parenthood Action Fund[75]
- Sierra Club[76]
- Stonewall Democrats of Arizona[77]
- Students for Gun Legislation
- VoteVets[78]
Primary results
Libertarian primary
Neither one of the write-in candidates received enough votes to secure the Libertarian nomination in the general election.
Write-in candidates
Eliminated in primary
- Barry Hess, write-in Libertarian candidate in the 2018 United States Senate election in Arizona and Libertarian nominee in the 2014 Arizona gubernatorial election[79][80]
- Alan White[19]
Primary results
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Other candidates
General election write-in candidates
Declared
Republican
Democratic
Other
- Christopher Beckett, veteran (Independent)[81]
- William "Will" Decker (Independent)[81]
- Matthew "Doc" Dorchester (Libertarian)[81]
- Nicholas N. Glenn, Navy veteran and aerospace engineer (Independent Republican)[81]
- Mathew Haupt (Independent)[81]
- Benjamin Rodriguez (Independent)[81]
- Joshua Rodriguez (Unity)[81]
- Frank Saenz (Independent)[81]
- Jim Stevens (Independent)[81]
Withdrawn
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General election
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Debates
- Complete video of debate, October 6, 2020
Predictions
Post-primary endorsements
Martha McSally (R)
Federal officials
- Nikki Haley, former U.S. Ambassador to the UN (2017–2018) and former governor of South Carolina (2011–2017)[93]
Newspapers
Mark Kelly (D)
Federal officials
- Seth Moulton, U.S. representative from MA-06[95]
Organizations
- Center for Biological Diversity[96]
- Climate Hawks Vote[97]
- Equality Arizona[98]
- J Street[99]
- MoveOn[100]
- National Education Association[101]
- Natural Resources Defense Council Action Fund[102]
Unions
Newspapers
Individuals
- Kerry Washington, actress
Polling
Graphical summary
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Aggregate polls
Hypothetical polling
with Daniel McCarthy and Mark Kelly
with Ruben Gallego
on whether McSally deserves to be re-elected
with generic Republican and generic Democrat
Results
By county
By congressional district
Kelly won five of nine congressional districts.[223]
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See also
Notes
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- In December 2018, McSally was appointed by Governor Doug Ducey to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Senator John McCain and the resignation of Senator Jon Kyl.
Partisan clients
- Poll sponsored by the American Action Network, a conservative advocacy group.
- Poll sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign which has endorsed Biden prior to this poll's sampling period.
- Poll sponsored by AARP.
- Polling was sponsored by OANN.
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References
Further reading
External links
Wikiwand - on
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