Kyrsten Sinema Publicly Abandoned By Her Chief Of Staff

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Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who announced earlier this month she would be changing her Publiclu political party registration from Democratic to independent, is now working with a new chief of staff after the role’s former occupant left for a lobbying job with a company that works with clients in the healthcare industry.

Recent reporting also outlined how Sinema has seen a digital ad company and polling firm, both of which have long histories of work for Democratic campaigns, decide on no longer working with her. Sinema hasn’t confirmed she will be running for re-election, a race in which she would be on the ballot in 2024, but changing her party affiliation will help her with avoiding a potentially precarious Democratic primary. The interest some were harboring in challenging her in a primary was no secret after she drew increasing criticism inside the Democratic Party for decisions like her relentless support of the Senate’s filibuster rules, which require 60 votes in the 100-member chamber for moving forward with most legislative initiatives. Breaking with almost every one of her Democratic colleagues, she voted against and helped sink an effort to alter those rules to allow the Senate to pass renewed voting rights protections named after John Lewis.

Meg Joseph, Sinema’s recently departed chief of staff, worked with the Senator since her time in the House. She will now be working at Tarplin Downs & Young. “Meg has been an invaluable part of my team helping lead our political and policy operations through two terms in the House, our successful Senate campaign, and an incredibly effective four years in the Senate. We will miss her leadership in our office, and we wish her continued success in her new role,” Sinema said. Joseph added she would “continue to support [Sinema’s] work for Arizona.”

Sinema’s decision to leave the Democratic Party won’t affect the party’s control of the Senate. Bernie Sanders and Angus King are already independents who caucus with the Democrats and generally vote in line with party ambitions. However, Sinema will also be losing access to NGP VAN databases of Democratic voters’ details when next month ends. The info concluded in those databases is used for some of the foundational elements of campaigning, like visiting prospective voters door-to-door and sending out mailers. She’s not the only candidate — or reasonably close to the only candidate — (originally) from the Democratic Party who could win in Arizona. After winning a race to complete the final term of Arizona’s late Senator John McCain, Mark Kelly — a Democrat — recently defeated Trump-backed Republican Blake Masters in a race for a full, six-year term.

Image: Gage Skidmore/ Creative Commons