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Kyrsten Sinema Calls for Bridging Divides in Victory Speech

Kyrsten Sinema

The U.S. senator-elect from Arizona also paid tribute to a predecessor, the late John McCain.

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In her victory speech Monday after being declared the winner of a U.S. Senate seat from Arizona, Kyrsten Sinema called for bridging divides and coming together, and gave a tribute to the state's late Sen. John McCain.

"We can work with people who are different than us. ... We can embrace difference while seeking common ground," said Sinema, a Democrat who will be the first out bisexual U.S. senator and the first woman elected to the chamber from Arizona. She is the second member of the LGBTQ community to be elected to the body, after lesbian Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, who was reelected this year. Sinema will succeed Jeff Flake, a Republican, who did not seek reelection.

(RELATED: Kyrsten Sinema: Smart, Funny, Bi and Running for Senate)

She and her opponent, Republican Martha McSally, both ran "because we want what's best for Arizona and our country," she said, but they offered different visions. In choosing her, Sinema said, Arizonans rejected "fear and party politics" and chose someone who would work across party lines to serve the interests of the state.

In her shout-out to McCain, who died in August, Sinema said he is "irreplaceable," but he left an example to be followed, as he "always put country ahead of party."

Watch the full speech below.

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Trudy Ring

Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.
Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.