WASHINGTON, Dec 9 (Reuters) – Arizona U.S. Kyrsten Sinema, Senator of Arizona said Friday that she was switching to an independent party. This came just days after the Democratic Party won 51 seats in the Georgia Senate.
I have declared my independence from Washington’s broken political system by joining the growing number of Arizonans that reject party politics. She stated that she registered as an Arizona Independent in an op-ed published by Arizona Central.
In a Politico interview, Sinema stated that she will not be joining the Republican Party. If this holds, Democrats may still have greater control over the governing of the divided chamber.
The Senate was 50-50 Democratic with U.S. vice president Kamala Harris winning a tiebreaking vote. U.S. U.S.
Two additional senators, Bernie Sanders of Vermont (and Angus King from Maine) are currently registered independents. However, they generally co-chair with Democrats.
Sinema stated that her shift was due to a rising number of Western U.S. citizens declaring their independence from the Republican or Democratic parties.
She wrote, “Like many Arizonans I have never fitted perfectly into either national party.”
