Democrat Ruben Gallego has been elected Arizona’s first Latino U.S. senator, defeating Republican Kari Lake and preventing Republicans from further padding their Senate majority. Gallego’s victory continues a string of Democratic successes for the Senate in a state that was reliably Republican for those seats until Donald Trump was elected president in 2016. Arizona voters had rejected Trump-endorsed candidates in every election since, but the president-elect won Arizona this year over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris

Gallego is a five-term House member and an Iraq War veteran with an up-by-the-bootstraps life story that he featured prominently in his public appearances and ads. He will replace Kyrsten Sinema, whose 2018 victory as a Democrat created a formula that the party has successfully replicated ever since. Sinema left the Democratic Party two years ago after she antagonized the party’s left wing. She considered running for a second term as an independent but bowed out when it was clear she had no clear path to victory

Gallego’s supporters chanted “Yes, he could!” in Spanish as he made his first comments after the race was called. He promised to fight for Arizona in Washington, including those who did not vote for him. During his brief remarks, he credited his success to his single mother and promised to work to improve the nation.

On Monday night, the Associated Press left a voicemail and email message seeking response from Lake’s campaign. With Gallego’s victory, only one important race remained uncalled in Arizona. The 6th Congressional District battle between Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani and Democrat Kirsten Engel has yet to be called. Gallego ran ahead of Harris, indicating that a sizable proportion of voters supported Trump at the top of the ticket and the Democrat for Senate, similar to Sinema’s victory and Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly’s victories in 2020 and 2022. This year, ticket-splitters were also critical in the Senate contests in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Nevada, which Democrats won despite Trump’s victory in their states.

On Monday night, the Associated Press left a call and email message requesting a comment from Lake’s campaign. With Gallego’s victory, only one major race remained uncalled in Arizona. The 6th Congressional District race between Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani and Democrat Kirsten Engel has yet to be decided. Gallego finished ahead of Harris, indicating that a large proportion of voters supported Trump at the top of the ticket and the Democrat for Senate, comparable to Sinema’s and Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly’s triumphs in 2020 and 2022. This year, ticket-splitters were also important in the Senate races in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Nevada, which Democrats won despite Trump’s victory in their respective states.

Gallego, the son of Mexican and Colombian immigrants, grew up in Chicago before being accepted to Harvard University. He joined the US Marine Corps Reserve and fought in Iraq in 2005 with a battalion that suffered tremendous casualties, including the murder of his best friend. Gallego held a large fundraising advantage throughout the contest. He constantly assailed Lake’s support for a state statute dating back to the Civil War that prohibited abortions in almost all cases. Lake took a middle-ground stance on the subject, alienating some of her conservative colleagues by rejecting a federal abortion ban. Gallego presented Lake as a liar who will do or say anything to get power. He underplayed his progressive voting record in Congress and relied on his his personal story and his military service to build an image as a pragmatic moderate.

Lake is a well-known former television news presenter who rose to prominence on the populist right after running for governor of Arizona in 2022. She has never recognized losing the contest and refers to herself as the “lawful governor” in her 2023 book. Even after she began her Senate campaign, she pursued an unsuccessful legal challenge to invalidate it. Her obsessive belief in the untruth that Trump and she were robbed of consecutive elections won her favour with the former president, who considered her as his vice presidential running mate. However, it exacerbated her problems with the moderate Republicans she alienated during her 2022 campaign, when she disparaged the late Senator John McCain and then-Gov. Doug Ducey.

She attempted to moderate but struggled to maintain a consistent stance on sticky issues such as election fraud and abortion.

Lake instead focused on border security, a hot button topic for Republicans in a border state that experienced record border crossings under Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration. She pledged a severe crackdown on illegal immigration and accused Gallego of supporting “open borders.” She also criticized his personal life, including his divorce from Kate Gallego shortly before she gave child. His ex-wife, who is now Phoenix’s mayor, has embraced Gallego and campaigned alongside him.