Democrat Ruben Gallego and Republican Kari Lake were head-to-head in the Arizona State Senate race when the former came out on top. The former, an Iraq War veteran, beat the news anchor cum Trump supporter in a close call on Wednesday.
Gallego is a staunch proponent of access to abortion and housing affordability, while Lake is against abortion care and all for border security. Gallego was in the lead with 50.4% of the vote, while Lake secured 47.7%. In light of the shift in the political arena, the internet is reacting, mainly with confusion about the status quo in Arizona. As one user put it:
"So, Arizona is on pace to: - Protect abortion - Criminalize immigrants - Reject Kari Lake - Elect Donald Trump. Absolutely schizophrenic state."
Several concurred while others were happy that their vote finally mattered:
"My vote for Kamala did nothing BUT my vote for Gallego defeated Kari Lake and that’s a small victory idk," one user commented.
"I bet she'll find a spot in Trump's cabinet," another asserted.
"lol. thank you for pointing out the silver lining. phew," someone else sighed a breath of relief.
"Then it was a great night. She should absolutely take it personally," yet another tweeted.
Several more hopped on the bandwagon to weigh in:
"I'm concerned that Arizona is not counting until they figure out how to keep Kari Lake from overtaking Gallego," another user opined.
"I'm sure the orange blob will find a place in his administration for Kari Lake," yet another echoed.
"So Arizona voted for Gallego for senate but trump for president?" someone else questioned.
The internet was seemingly confused about why Harris' supporters were voting for Lake, while others alleged foul play was involved.
Who are Ruben Gallego and Kari Lake?
Ruben Gallego was born to Mexican-Columbian immigrants. He was raised by his single mother in Chicago and enrolled at Harvard later in life. He then enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, when he fought in the Iraq War in 2005. However, after witnessing the death of his best friend friend, he decided to quit.
On the other hand, Kari Lake bonded with Trump over their mutual opinion that the 2020 elections were allegedly "stolen." Reportedly, Lake was in the running to become Trump's running mate in the presidential election.
In speaking to Democrats on Tuesday in Phoenix, Gallego said:
"We had a mantra on this campaign: Go everywhere and talk to everyone. And that’s exactly what we did. We didn’t take one vote for granted.”
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The senate race is one of many that will play a deciding factor in the enate majority, and it reflects the Arizonian voter's views, given that the state largely favored the Republican party up until 2016. Post that, voters have been rejecting Trump and all of the candidates he has favored in every election across the state.
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