Kyrsten Sinema | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Sinema in 2020 | |
| United States Senator fromArizona | |
| In office January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Jeff Flake |
| Succeeded by | Ruben Gallego |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromArizona's9th district | |
| In office January 3, 2013 – January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Greg Stanton |
| Member of theArizona Senate from the15th district | |
| In office January 10, 2011 – January 3, 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Ken Cheuvront |
| Succeeded by | David Lujan |
| Member of theArizona House of Representatives from the15th district | |
| In office January 10, 2005 – January 10, 2011 Serving with David Lujan | |
| Preceded by | |
| Succeeded by | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Kyrsten Lea Sinema (1976-07-12)July 12, 1976 (age 49) Tucson, Arizona, U.S. |
| Party |
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| Other political affiliations | Senate Democratic Caucus (2019–2025)[a] |
| Spouse | |
| Education | |
| Signature |  |
Kyrsten Lea Sinema (/ˈkɪərstənˈsɪnəmə/KEER-stənSIN-ə-mə; born July 12, 1976)[1] is an American politician, lawyer, and former social worker who served from 2019 to 2025 as aUnited States senator fromArizona. A former member of theDemocratic Party, Sinema became anindependent in December 2022.
Sinema served three terms as astate representative for the15th legislative district from 2005 to 2011, one term as thestate senator for the 15th legislative district from 2011 to 2012, and three terms as theUnited States representative for the9th district from 2013 to 2019. She began her political career in theArizona Green Party and rose to prominence for herprogressive advocacy, supporting causes such asLGBT rights and opposing thewar on terror. She left the Green Party to join theArizona Democratic Party in 2004 and was elected to a seat in theUnited States House of Representatives in2012. After her election, she joined theNew Democrat Coalition, theBlue Dog Coalition and thebipartisanProblem Solvers Caucus, amassing one of the most conservative voting records in the Democratic caucus.
Sinema won the2018 Senate election to replace the retiringJeff Flake, defeatingRepublican nomineeMartha McSally. She became thefirst openly bisexual and the second openlyLGBTQ woman (afterTammy Baldwin) to be elected to the Senate.[2] Sinema also became the first woman elected to the Senate from Arizona and the only religiously unaffiliated member of the Senate. She was one of four independents in the Senate, alongsideBernie Sanders,Angus King, andJoe Manchin, all of whom caucused with the Democrats.
Sinema was considered a key swing vote in the Senate during the117th and118th Congresses, when it was almost evenly split between Democrats and Republicans.[3][4][5][6] On March 5, 2024, she announced she would notseek reelection and was succeeded by DemocratRuben Gallego.[7]
Sinema was born inTucson, Arizona,[8][9] on July 12, 1976,[10] to Marilyn (Wiley) and Dan Sinema.[11][12] She has an older brother and younger sister.[13][14] Her father was an attorney. Her parents divorced when she was a child, and her mother, who had custody of the children, remarried. With her siblings, mother, and stepfather, Sinema moved toDeFuniak Springs, Florida, a small town on thePanhandle.[14]
Although she later became the only religiously unaffiliated member of the U.S. Senate,[15] Sinema was raised as aMormon (LDS Church).[16]
Sinema has said that when her stepfather lost his job and the bank foreclosed on their home, the family lived for three years in an abandonedgas station[17] and that for two years they had no toilet or electricity while living there.[18] She later recalled: "My stepdad built a bunkbed for me and my sister. We separated our bunkbed from the kitchen with one of those big chalkboards on rollers. I knew that was weird. A chalkboard shouldn't be a wall. A kitchen should have running water."[18]
According to journalistJonathan Martin inThe New York Times, Sinema has given "contradictory answers about her early life," and her mother and stepfather have filed court documents saying they had made monthly payments for gas, electricity, and phone bills, even though Sinema had said they had been "without running water or electricity".[19] Asked whether she had embellished details from her childhood, Sinema said, "I've shared what I remember from my childhood. I know what I lived through."[19]
She graduated as valedictorian fromWalton High School in DeFuniak Springs at age 16 and earned herB.A. fromBrigham Young University (BYU) in 1995 at age 18.[20][17] She left the LDS Church after graduating from BYU.[16] Sinema returned to Arizona in 1995.[21]
While employed as a social worker, Sinema completed aMaster of Social Work degree atArizona State University in 1999. In 2004, she earned aJ.D. degree fromArizona State University College of Law and started working as acriminal defense lawyer.[17][22] In 2012, she earned a Ph.D. in justice studies from Arizona State[17][23] and in 2018, she completed an online M.B.A. from theW. P. Carey School of Business.[24][25]
In 2003, Sinema became an adjunct professor teaching master's-level policy and grant-writing classes at Arizona State University School of Social Work and an adjunct business law professor atArizona Summit Law School, formerly known as Phoenix School of Law.[26] Sinema began her political career in theArizona Green Party before joining theArizona Democratic Party in 2004,[27] and called herself a "Prada socialist".[28][29]
In 2000, Sinema worked onRalph Nader'spresidential campaign.[30] In 2001 and 2002, she ran for local elected offices as anindependent and lost.[21] In 2002,The Arizona Republic published a letter from Sinema criticizingcapitalism. She wrote: "Until the average American realizes that capitalism damages her livelihood while augmenting the livelihoods of the wealthy, the Almighty Dollar will continue to rule."[31] In 2003, she protestedJoe Lieberman's unsuccessful2004 presidential bid, telling theHartford Courant: "He's a shame toDemocrats. I don't even know why he's running. He seems to want to getRepublicans voting for him – what kind of strategy is that?"[32][33]
While in theGreen Party, Sinema was its local spokesperson, working to repeal thedeath penalty and organizingantiwar protests.[34] She had organized 15 antiwar rallies by the time theIraq War began.[21] She also opposed thewar in Afghanistan.[21] During a February 15, 2003, protest inPatriots Square Park in Phoenix, a group led by Sinema distributed flyers portraying a U.S. service member as a skeleton "inflicting 'U.S. terror' in Iraq and the Middle East".[21]
In a 2003 opinion piece, Sinema wrote that presidentsRonald Reagan andGeorge H. W. Bush were "the real Saddam and Osama lovers".[35] When asked on a local radio show whether she would oppose someone joining theTaliban and fighting on its behalf, Sinema responded: "Fine ... I don't care if you want to do that, go ahead."[21]
In a 2011 address toNetroots Nation, Sinema called Arizona the "meth lab of democracy", in contrast to the "laboratories of democracy" in other states.[36]
In 2020, as a senator, Sinema became a summer intern in a two-week program at Three Sticks Winery in Sonoma, California, which is owned byBill Price, the co-founder of private equity firmTPG Capital.[37] Various transactions continued into 2021, as Price contributed $2,900 to Sinema's campaign. The campaign also reported "meeting expenses" with the winery, though Three Sticks made contradictory claims it was to purchase wine.[38]
In January 2025, Sinema joinedCoinbase's Global Advisory Council to advocate for the cryptocurrency industry and help it coordinate with US lawmakers.[39][40]
In March 2025, Sinema joined the law and lobbying firmHogan Lovells as a senior advisor.[41][42]
In October 2025, Sinema made a failed attempt to lobby the city council of aPhoenix suburb to allow the development of anAI data center, and revealed her alignment with the Trump Administration in developing AI infrastructure.[43] Earlier in the year she founded and became the co-chair of the AI Infrastructure Coalition.[44]
In 2002, Sinema first ran for theArizona House of Representatives as anindependent affiliated with theArizona Green Party.[45] She finished in last place in a five-candidate field, receiving 8 percent of the vote.[46]
Sinema joined theDemocratic Party in 2004.[27] That year, Sinema andDavid Lujan won the two seats for Arizona's 15th district, with 37 percent of the vote for Sinema and 34 percent for Lujan over incumbent representativeWally Straughn.[47] Sinema was reelected three times with over 30 percent of the vote.[48][49][50] In 2008, Sinema completed the Harvard UniversityJohn F. Kennedy School of Government program for senior executives in state and local government as a David Bohnett LGBTQ Victory Institute Leadership Fellow. In 2009 and 2010, Sinema was an assistant Minority Leader for the Democratic Caucus of the Arizona House of Representatives.[51]
In 2010, Sinema was elected to theArizona Senate, defeatingRepublican Bob Thomas, 63 to 37 percent.[52]
According toElle, "her first public comment as an elected official came in 2005, after a Republican colleague's speech insulted LGBT people. 'We're simply people like everyone else who want and deserve respect', she passionately declared. Later, when reporters asked about her use of the first person, Sinema replied, 'Duh, I'm bisexual.'"[14] In 2012, when running for U.S. House, Sinema said she did not remember disclosing her sexual orientation in 2005 and declined to discuss the significance of being the first openly bisexual member of the House.[53]
In 2006, Sinema told a radio host that she was "the most liberal member of the Arizona State Legislature".[54] Also in 2006, she sponsored a bill urging the adoption of theDREAM Act,[55] and co-chaired Arizona Together, the statewide campaign that defeatedProposition 107, which would have banned the recognition ofsame-sex marriage andcivil unions in Arizona. In 2008, a similar referendum,Proposition 102, passed.[56]
In 2006, Sinema was asked about "new feminism", and responded: "These women who act like staying at home, leeching off their husbands or boyfriends, and just cashing the checks is some sort of feminism because they're choosing to live that life. That's bullshit. I mean, what the fuck are we really talking about here?"[57][58][59] After facing criticism, Sinema apologized and said the interview format was intended to be a "lighthearted spoof", adding: "I was raised by a stay-at-home mom. So she did a pretty good job with me."[60]
Sinema campaigned against Proposition107, a referendum to ban the recognition of same-sex marriage and civil unions in Arizona.[61] In 2008, she led the campaign againstProposition 102, another referendum that proposed a ban on recognition of same-sex marriage in Arizona. Proposition 102 was approved with 56% of the vote in the general election on November 4, 2008. Sinema chaired a coalition called Protect Arizona's Freedom, which defeatedWard Connerly's goal to place an initiative on the state ballot that would eliminate racial-preference programs.[62][63]
In June 2009, Sinema was one of 32 state legislators appointed by PresidentBarack Obama to the White House Health Reform Task Force, which helped shape theAffordable Care Act.[64] Due to her strong support of the bill, she was invited to attend the Obamacare bill signing at the White House in March 2010.[65]
In 2010, Sinema sponsored a bill to give in-state tuition to veterans; it was held in committee and did not receive a vote.[66] Also in 2010, Sinema was named one ofTime magazine's "40 Under 40".[67] TheCenter for Inquiry gave Sinema its Award for the Advancement of Science and Reason in Public Policy in 2011.[68]
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In June 2011, Sinema said she was considering running for theU.S. House of Representatives in2012. She lived in the samePhoenix neighborhood as incumbent Democratic congressmanEd Pastor, but was adamant that she would not challenge another Democrat in a primary.[69] On January 3, 2012, Sinema announced her bid for Congress, in the 9th congressional district.[70] The district had previously been the 5th, represented by freshman RepublicanDavid Schweikert; it contained 60 percent of the old 5th's territory.[71] Schweikert had been drawn into the 6th district—the old 3rd district—and sought reelection there.
Although Sinema was not required to resign her State Senate seat under Arizona'sresign-to-run laws (since she was in the final year of her term), she did so on the same day that she announced her candidacy. On August 28, 2012, Sinema won the three-way Democratic primary with nearly 42 percent of the vote. Her opponents, state senatorDavid Schapira and formerArizona Democratic Party chairmanAndrei Cherny, a former speechwriter in theClinton administration, each finished with less than 30 percent of the vote.[17][72][73]
In the general election, Sinema ran against Republican nominee Vernon Parker, the former mayor ofParadise Valley.[17] She was endorsed byThe Arizona Republic.[17] The campaign was described as a "nasty",[74] "bitterly fought race that featured millions of dollars inattack ads".[75] Parker rancampaign ads that accused Sinema of being an "anti-Americanhippie" who practiced "Pagan rituals".[76] The Republican-aligned outside groupAmerican Future Fund spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on attack ads against Sinema.[58] When her religious views were raised as an issue, her campaign said that she simply believes in asecular approach to government.[77]
The November 6 election was initially too close to call, because Arizona election authorities failed to count more than 25 percent of the votes on election day.[78] Sinema held a narrow lead over Parker, while provisional and absentee ballots were still being counted.[79][80] On November 12, when it was apparent that Sinema's lead was too large for Parker to overcome, theAssociated Press called the race for Sinema.[81]
Once all ballots were counted, Sinema won by 4 percentage points, over 10,000 votes.Libertarian Powell Gammill finished third with 7 percent of the votes.[82]
Sinema is thefirst openly bisexual person andsecond openly LGBT woman (after SenatorTammy Baldwin ofWisconsin) elected to the United States Congress.[83]
Sinema ran for reelection in 2014 and was unopposed in the Democratic primary, which took place on August 26, 2014. She faced RepublicanWendy Rogers in the general election.[84][85]
According toRoll Call, Sinema considered herself bipartisan. It was drawn as a "fair-fight" district, and PresidentBarack Obama won the district by four points in 2012.[30] In September 2014, she was endorsed for reelection by theU.S. Chamber of Commerce, becoming one of five Democrats to be endorsed by the Chamber in the 2014 congressional election cycle.[86] She was reelected with approximately 55 percent of the vote, beating Rogers by 13 points.[87]
Unopposed in her primary, Sinema won the general election with 61 percent of the vote. Her opponent, Republican nominee Dave Giles, received 39 percent.[88]
Following her election to Congress, Sinema shifted toward the political center, joining the conservative DemocraticBlue Dog Coalition and the bipartisanProblem Solvers Caucus and amassing a "reliably moderate-Democratic" voting record. Sinema worked for the adoption of theDREAM Act,[89] hiring DREAM Act advocateErika Andiola as a district outreach staffer.[90]
On the House Financial Services Committee, Sinema supported theSwaps Regulatory Improvement Act of 2013, which sought to exempt certain financial instruments from some Dodd-Frank restrictions. Bank lobbyists drafted key amendments, which appeared word-for-word in the bill she supported in the committee and on the House floor. It passed the House, with only 119 Democrats and three Republicans opposing it, but failed to advance in the Senate banking committee.[91][92][93]
Sinema co-sponsored other anti-regulation bills, including the Systemic Risk Designation Improvement Act of 2015, which includes provisions that Silicon Valley Bank PresidentGregory W. Becker called for in testimony before Congress that year. That measure also failed to pass.[92]
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On September 28, 2017, Sinema officially announced hercandidacy for the Class I United States Senate seat held byRepublican incumbentJeff Flake, who declined to seek reelection the next month.
In March 2018, Sinema donated to charity $33,800 in campaign contributions she had received fromEd Buck, a prominent Democratic donor who came under scrutiny after a homeless escort died of a drug overdose at his California home in 2017.[100] She had previously donated to charity $53,400 in campaign contributions from people with ties toBackpage, a website that was seized by theUnited States Department of Justice after it was accused of knowingly accepting ads for sex with underage girls.[101][102]
Federal Election Commission filings released in April 2018 showed Sinema had raised over $8.2 million, more than the three leading Republican primary contenders combined.[103]
During the 2018 campaign, Sinema refused to debate her competitor in the Democratic primary, Deedra Abboud, an attorney and community activist.[104] Sinema won the August Democratic primary for the Senate seat. Her Republican opponent in the general election was fellow Arizona U.S. Representative and eventual Senate colleagueMartha McSally.[105][106] Sinema received the endorsement of theHuman Rights Campaign.[107]
While Abboud said she would vote against the nomination ofBrett Kavanaugh to theSupreme Court, Sinema "said she wanted to delve deeper into Kavanaugh's writings and interview him personally before deciding". She said she was "running on the issues people care about most, including offering quality, affordable health care and promoting economic opportunity".[108]
In the summer of 2018, Sinema said she would vote againstChuck Schumer forMinority Leader if elected to the U.S. Senate. "The Democratic leadership has failed Democrats across the country," she said. "I am unafraid to say what I believe about what I think our party needs to do and I think our party needs to grow and change."[109]
Journalist Jonathan Martin wrote inThe New York Times in September 2018 that Sinema was running "one of the most moderate-sounding and cautious Senate campaigns this year, keeping the media at arms-length and avoiding controversial issues," and said her campaign was generally reluctant to bring up PresidentDonald Trump.[19] According to Martin, both Republicans and Democrats said that Sinema had "few major legislative accomplishments to her record" and was running "on a political image that she has shaped and reshaped over the years. And nothing is more central to it now than her childhood homelessness."[19]
On November 12, many news sources called the U.S. Senate race for Sinema, and the Republican nominee, Martha McSally, conceded.[110][111][112][113] Sinema was sworn in with the116th United States Congress on January 3, 2019.[114][115]
Sinema is the first woman to represent Arizona in the United States Senate.[9] She was also the first Democrat elected to represent Arizona in the chamber sinceDennis DeConcini, who held the same Class 1 seat from 1977 to 1995.[116][117]
Sinema was sworn in as a member of the U.S. Senate on January 3, 2019.[118] During theoath of office ceremony, led by Vice PresidentMike Pence, she decided to be sworn in not on the traditional Bible, but on copies of theUnited States Constitution and theConstitution of Arizona.[119] During her time in the Senate, she was the senior U.S. senator from Arizona; serving alongside then junior and now the senior U.S. senator for Arizona DemocratMark Kelly. Kelly defeated Sinema's 2018 general election opponent, Martha McSally, who was appointed to fill the Senate seat vacated upon the resignation ofJon Kyl, who had been appointed to fill the Senate seat vacated upon the death ofJohn McCain.[118]
On February 14, 2019, Sinema voted to confirmWilliam Barr asattorney general.[120]
During theCOVID-19 pandemic, Sinema was noted for her use of colorful wigs. Her spokeswoman explained that Sinema wore them to emphasize the importance ofsocial distancing: by wearing wigs, she did not need to go to a hair salon.[121]
Sinema voted to convict Donald Trump in both hisfirst andsecond impeachment trials.[122][123]
Sinema urged Senate colleagues to vote in favor of the proposedJanuary 6 commission to further investigate thestorming of the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021. In a joint statement with SenatorJoe Manchin, she said, "we implore our Senate Republican colleagues to work with us to find a path forward on a commission to examine the events of January 6th."[124] Sinema was one of two Senate Democrats who did not vote on it, the other being SenatorPatty Murray ofWashington. Murray and Sinema both cited a "personal family matter" for their absence.[125][126][127]
In October 2021, five of the veterans Sinema had selected for her advisory council as liaisons to the Arizona service member community resigned. Their resignation letter accused her of "answering to big donors rather than your own people" and criticized her opposition to key Democratic Party issues, such as abolishing the filibuster and aspects of Biden'sBuild Back Better Plan.[128][129]
Sinema's stance on the filibuster was sharply criticized by others in her party and her constituents. On January 22, 2022, theArizona Democratic Partyexecutive board voted to censure Sinema for voting with Senate Republicans to maintain the filibuster, preventing passage of avoting rights bill.[130] The same year, the Arizona Youth Climate Coalition and the Tucson Climate Coalition worked on a pressure campaign to persuade Sinema to abolish the modern filibuster. The campaign included an open letter and petition signed by over 150 Arizona legislators, constituents, and climate action leaders, including her personal friend, Arizona Sierra Club director Sandy Bahr. The letter and an accompanying op-ed published in theArizona Daily Star persuaded her office to meet her critics on February 24, 2022. The meeting was ultimately unsuccessful.[131]
Sinema was the only U.S. elected official to attend the2022 Bilderberg Conference, an annual private gathering of the European and North Americanpolitical and business elite.[132] About 120 high-level politicians, CEOs, national security experts, academics and journalists from 21 countries attended the closed-door meeting.[133][134]
In December 2022, Sinema announced that she had left the Democratic Party and registered as an independent.[135][136] She continued to caucus with the Democratic Party for committee assignments.[137][138][139][140]
On March 5, 2024, Sinema announced that she would retire from Congress at the end of her term and not seek reelection, saying that her approach to fostering compromise seemed to be "a model of the past".[141][142][143]
Source:[144]
Sinema has been described as amoderate and acentrist, being generally socially liberal but fiscally moderate-to-conservative.[145][146][147] She has cited U.S. SenatorJoe Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia, as a role model.[19]
In the House of Representatives, Sinema was a member of theBlue Dog Coalition and theProblem Solvers Caucus.[98] According to the Bipartisan Index created by the Lugar Center and theMcCourt School of Public Policy, Sinema was the sixth most bipartisan member of the U.S. House of Representatives during the first session of the115th Congress.[148] TheNational Journal's 2013 vote ratings placed Sinema near the center of theirliberal–conservative scale.[149] In 2015, she voted with the majority of her party 73% of the time.[150] In 2015 and 2016, Sinema did not vote forNancy Pelosi forspeaker of the U.S. House.[151] In 2016, theNational Journal gave her a composite ideology score of 57% liberal and 43% conservative.[152] She was one of the most conservative House Democrats during her House tenure.[153]
According toGovTrack, Sinema has acentrist tocenter-right voting record in the Senate, to the right of Republican SenatorsSusan Collins andLisa Murkowski.[154] According toFiveThirtyEight, as of January 2021, Sinema had voted in line with Donald Trump's position on legislation about 50% of the time.[155] As a result, the Arizona Democratic Party suggested censuring her. But after delaying the vote[156] and watering down the resolution from a censure to an advisement,[157] the Party ultimatelytabled the resolution.[158]
According toFiveThirtyEight, as of July 2022, Sinema had voted with President Biden's position on legislative issues 94% of the time.[159]
In December 2022, Sinema changed her party registration toindependent.[138]
When asked aboutRoe v. Wade in 2018, Sinema said the ruling should not be overturned and that she supports a woman'sright to have an abortion.[160] In 2020, she had a 100% rating from the abortion-rights organizationPlanned Parenthood, and a 0% rating from theanti-abortion organization Campaign for Working Families.[152] She was endorsed byEMILY's List, an abortion-rights-focused political action committee,[161] until 2022, when she voted with Republicans against changing the filibuster to allow passage of the Freedom to Vote andJohn R. Lewis Voting Rights Act.[162] That vote also cost her the support of the abortion-rights advocacy groupNARAL Pro-Choice America.[162] AfterRoe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022, Sinema said the decision "endangers the health and well-being of women in Arizona and across America."[163]
While working as a spokesperson for theArizona Green Party, Sinema worked to repeal thedeath penalty.[19] In her 2009 book,Unite and Conquer, she explained her stance on capital punishment, writing that she opposed it "because I think no civilized society should use it as a punishment," though "since we have the death penalty in Arizona, I want to ensure that it's being implemented as fairly and judiciously as possible".[164][165]
According toThe Arizona Republic, while serving in the Arizona State Legislature, she introduced more bills regarding the death penalty than bills regarding military or veterans' families.[166] In 2007, she introduced HB 2278, which would require theArizona Supreme Court to "strike" any prior death sentence and "enter in its place a sentence of natural life", as inlife without parole.[167]
Sinema has served as an Advisory Board Member of theArizona Death Penalty Forum.[168] She was also a presenter at their 2010 Spring Conference, which was co-sponsored byAmnesty International and theACLU of Arizona.[169]
In 2017, Sinema and 47 other House Democrats voted with the majority of House Republicans on H.R. 115,Thin Blue Line Act of 2017,[170] which was opposed by theACLU.[171] The bill would "expand the list of statutory aggravating factors in death penalty determinations" to include the killing or targeting of alaw enforcement officer,first responder, orfirefighter.[172]
On February 5, 2019, Sinema voted for a bill that would make improvements to certain defense and security assistance provisions, authorize the appropriation of funds to Israel, and reauthorize the United States-Jordan Defense Cooperation Act of 2015.[173] On March 13, 2019, she voted to remove theUnited States Armed Forces from hostilities in the Republic of Yemen that have not been authorized by Congress.[174]
Sinema has voted for federal stimulus spending.[161] She has said, "raising taxes is more economically sound than cutting vital social services."[175]
In 2015, Sinema was one of just seven House Democrats to vote in favor of a Republican-backed bill to repeal theestate tax, which affects about 0.2% of Americans in the U.S. each year (estates of $5.43 million or more for individuals, or $10.86 million or more for couples).[176] That same year, she voted to change theConsumer Financial Protection Bureau's leadership from a single director to a bipartisan commission.[177][178]
In 2016, with Republican representativeJohn Katko of New York, Sinema cosponsored the Working Parents Flexibility Act (H.R. 4699). This legislation would establish a tax-free "parental savings account" in which employers and parents could invest savings tax-free, with unused funds eligible to be "rolled into qualifying retirement, college savings or ABLE accounts for people with disabilities without tax penalties".[179] In September 2018, she voted "to makeindividual tax cuts passed by the GOP [in 2017] permanent".[180] She was one of three Democrats to break with her party and vote for the tax cuts being made permanent.[181]
On July 30, 2019, Sinema and SenatorBill Cassidy released a proposal under which new parents would be authorized to advance their child tax credit benefits in order to receive a $5,000 cash benefit upon either birth or adoption of a child. The parents' child tax credit would then be reduced by $500 for each year of the following decade.[182]
In 2022, several provisions of theInflation Reduction Act of 2022 were changed after negotiations with Sinema: a provision narrowing thecarried interest loophole was dropped, a 1% excise tax on stock buybacks was added, and manufacturing exceptions were added to the corporate minimum tax.[183][184][185] Sinema had also previously threatened legislation in theBuild Back Better plan if it did not preserve the carried interest loophole.[186]
On February 12, 2021, Sinema became the second Democratic senator afterJoe Manchin to announce her opposition to including a $15/hour minimum wage as part of aCOVID-19 relief bill.[187] On March 5, 2021, Sinema voted against an increase of thefederal minimum wage to$15 an hour, proposed by SenatorBernie Sanders as part of theAmerican Rescue Plan Act of 2021.[188][189] She did so by flashing a thumbs-down,[190] and some commentators compared her demeanor to that of former Arizona senatorJohn McCain, who had voted with a dramatic thumbs-down gesture in 2017;[191] others compared her to former French queenMarie Antoinette, to whom the phrase "let them eat cake" is attributed.[188][192][193][194] Sinema's office responded that any commentary on her clothes and demeanor was sexist.[195] Her vote was at odds with that of fellow DemocratMark Kelly, thejuniorArizona senator, who supports a $15/hour minimum wage.[196][197]
In December 2024, Sinema andJoe Manchin joined Republican senators in voting to blockLauren McFerran's renomination to theNational Labor Relations Board (NLRB),[198] effectively blocking Democratic control of the NLRB until at least 2026 and allowing Republican control starting underPresident-elect Trump.
In February 2019, Sinema was one of 20 senators to sponsor the Employer Participation in Repayment Act, enabling employers to contribute up to $5,250 to their employees' student loans.[199]
In 2019, Sinema was one of four Democratic-caucusing senators to join all Republicans in voting against theGreen New Deal, astimulus program that aims to addressclimate change and economic inequality, while most other Democrats voted "present".[200][201] In April 2019, Sinema was one of three Democrats who voted with Republicans to confirmDavid Bernhardt, a former oil executive, as Secretary of the Interior.[202]
On February 12, 2019, Sinema voted along with the whole Senate for the Natural Resources Management Act, which provides for the management of the natural resources of the United States.[203]
In 2022, Sinema voted for theInflation Reduction Act, a major piece of climate and energy legislation designed to invest in renewable energy, which includes billions of dollars for drought relief.[204]
Sinema supports the use of military force to stopgenocide, such as inSudan,Somalia andRwanda.[205] She wrote a doctoral dissertation on the 1994Rwandan genocide that Lexington Books published in 2015 under the titleWho Must Die in Rwanda's Genocide?: The State of Exception Realized.[206][207]
Sinema was opposed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and helped organize anti-war protests while a law student at Arizona State University.[208] Sinema was involved in organizing a Phoenix-area group called the Arizona Alliance for Peaceful Justice (AAPJ). According to Josh Lederman ofThe Hill, "The group's mission statement at the time called military action 'an inappropriate response to terrorism' and advocated for using the legal system—not violence—to bringOsama bin Laden and others to justice."[209]
As an antiwar activist in the years after9/11, Sinema "led a group that distributed flyers depicting an American soldier as a skeleton inflicting 'U.S. terror' in Iraq and the Middle East." The flyers "promoted a February 2003 rally organized by Local to Global Justice, an anti-war group Sinema co-founded". Sinema was described in news reports as an organizer and sponsor of the rally and was listed as the point of contact for the event. One flyer referred to "Bush and hisfascist,imperialist war", saying, "Government is slavery", and describing laws as "cobwebs for the rich and chains of steel for the poor". CNN said that such positions were "a contrast from the more moderate profile she has developed since her 2012 election to Congress".[210]
In 2005 and 2006, she co-hosted anAir America radio show with9/11 trutherJeff Farias.[208] In 2006, Sinema said she opposed "war in all its forms", and wrote: "As one of the core organizers against the war from day one (September 12, 2001), I have always and will always continue to oppose war in all its forms."[209][205]
After joining Congress in 2012, she said her views on military force had "evolved", and that "you should never take military intervention off the table. When you do so, you give an out to a rogue nation or rogue actors."[205] Lederman reported that "she said she favors aggressive diplomacy, crippling sanctions to combat proliferation, and swift, multilateral intervention as a last resort".[205][209] Since joining Congress, she has voted against theIran Nuclear Deal and supported Trump's missile attack on Syria.[208]
Sinema favorsgun control measures such as requiring background checks on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows, and requiring a license for gun possession.[211] In 2014 and 2018 theNRA Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF), which opposes gun regulations, gave Sinema a "D" grade.[212][213][152]Gun Owners of America gave her a 17% rating.[214]
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Sinema voted against repealing theAffordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare),[215] but has called for reforms to the law.[216] In a 2012 congressional campaign debate, she said the health care law was not perfect, and that in Congress she would work to amend it to make it work effectively.[217] Sinema voted to delay the imposition of fines on those who did not purchase insurance in 2014. She also voted to repeal the Medical Device Tax and for the Keep Your Health Plan Act of 2013.[218][219][220]
Speaking about healthcare policy, Sinema said, "I used to say that I wanted universal health-care coverage in Arizona, which went over like a ton of bricks. Turns out, Arizonans hear the word 'universal' and think 'socialism'—or 'pinko commie'. But when I say that I want all Arizonans to have access to affordable, quality health care, Arizonans agree wholeheartedly. Same basic idea, different language."[221]
In 2021, Sinema opposed prescription drug pricing reform proposals in House and Senate versions of a Democrat-crafted spending bill. On October 8, 2021,Jacobin reported:
Early last month, a corporate front group called Center Forward purchased $600,000 worth of television and radio ads promoting Sinema in Arizona. The ads touted her "independence" and characterized her as "a bipartisan leader" in the mold of the late senator John McCain. As we reported, Center Forward has been heavily bankrolled by Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the powerful Washington drug lobby. Two Center Forward board members lobby for PhRMA, as well as drugmakers Amgen, Bayer, Gilead Sciences, Eli Lilly, Merck, Novartis, and Sanofi. A few days after the ad campaign started, Sinema informed the White House she opposed the party's drug pricing plan.[222]
Sinema and SenatorJoe Manchin met with President Biden the same day to discuss their concerns with the bills. Observers have noted that Sinema is one of the largest beneficiaries of pharmaceutical political action committee money in Congress, and has been described as a "Pharma Favorite".[223][224] KHN reported: "For the 2019–20 election cycle through March, political action committees run by employees of drug companies and their trade groups gave her $98,500 in campaign funds, Kaiser Health News' Pharma Cash to Congress database shows. That stands out in a Congress in which a third of the members got no pharma cash for the period and half of those who did got $10,000 or less."[223] Sinema's haul was "twice that of Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, considered one of the most vulnerable Republicans in November, and approached that of fellow Democrat Steny Hoyer, the powerful House majority leader from Maryland."[225] SenatorBernie Sanders indirectly called her out, saying: "Take a hard look at those people who are opposed to strong legislation to lower the cost of prescription drugs, and take a look at their campaign-finance reports. See where they get their money, how many of them get their money from the pharmaceutical industry, and the executives there. And I think there will be a direct correlation."[225] On October 18, 2021,Politico reported:
Democratic Sens. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia raked in cash last quarter from a bevy of corporations, executives and lobbyists working to pare back the Democratic reconciliation package that Sinema and Manchin have also been vocal opponents of, according to their latest campaign finance filings. ... Sinema, who has emerged as the leading Democratic opponent in the Senate to her party's drug pricing proposal, received more than $27,000 from PACs of pharmaceutical companies, including Astellas, Sunovion, Takeda, Horizon, Eli Lilly, Abbvie, Alexion and Lundbeck ...[226]
According to a profile inThe Advocate, "Sinema has her sights set on advancingLGBT rights."[227] She has a history of policy advocacy regarding LGBT rights and issues. In 2006, Sinema was among the leading opponents of a proposed amendment to the Arizona state constitution which would have bannedsame-sex marriages andcivil unions.[228] The proposal failed in Arizona, the first time that a state rejected a ban on same-sex marriage, but a second proposed amendment banning only same-sex marriage passed in 2008 with Sinema in opposition again.[229] She supports same-sex marriage,domestic partnership recognition, and addinggender identity to anti-discrimination laws.[230]
In 2013, Sinema co-sponsored Rep.Sean Patrick Maloney's letter, which opposedSaudi Arabia for "the use oftorture and capital punishment against the LGBTQ community".[231]
In December 2022, Sinema was a lead cosponsor and negotiator on theRespect for Marriage Act, which passed the Senate with a vote of 61–36.[232][233]
Sinema co-sponsored the Southwest Border Security Threat Assessment Act (H.R. 4482), a bill that calls for border threat analysis of terrorism, smuggling, and human trafficking every five years.[234][235]
Sinema was one of 24 House Democrats to vote in favor ofKate's Law,[236] a bill that would expand maximum sentences for foreigners who attempt to reenter the country, legally or illegally, after having been deported, denied entry or removed, and for foreign felons who attempt to reenter the country.[237]
Sinema voted for theSAFE Act, which expanded therefugee screening process to require signatures from thesecretary of homeland security, thedirector of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and thedirector of national intelligence for each refugee entering the country.[238][239]
Sinema opposedArizona SB 1070. She has argued that mass deportation of undocumented immigrants is not an option and supported theDREAM Act. Her 2012 campaign website stated that "we need to create a tough but fair path to citizenship for undocumented workers that requires them to get right with the law by paying back taxes, paying a fine and learning English as a condition of gaining citizenship."[234] In July 2018, she broke with her party by voting with Republicans against abolishingICE.[240]
TheFederation for American Immigration Reform, a PAC that seeks to limit both legal and illegal immigration, gave Sinema a 33% rating in 2018, andUnidosUS, which supports a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, gave Sinema a score of 88% in 2014.[214]
On March 14, 2019, Sinema voted against Trump's National Emergency declaration on border security.[241]
On February 4, 2021, Sinema voted against providing COVID-19 pandemic financial support to undocumented immigrants.[242]
In June 2013, Sinema became one of 29 original cosponsors of the bipartisan LIBERT-E (Limiting Internet and Blanket Electronic Review of Telecommunications and Email) Act, along with RepresentativeJustin Amash. The legislation would limit theNational Security Agency (NSA) to only collecting electronic information from subjects of an investigation.[243]
In July 2013, Sinema joined a bipartisan majority and voted against an amendment to a defense appropriations bill (offered by Amash) to prohibit the NSA from monitoring and recording details of U.S. citizens' telecommunications without a warrant.[244]
Early in her career, Sinema expressed enthusiasm about evading theSenate filibuster through thereconciliation process.[245]
On January 25, 2021, a spokesperson for Sinema toldThe Washington Post that she is "against eliminating the filibuster" and "not open to changing her mind" on the issue.[246][247] Additionally, Sinema has spoken out on the elimination of the judicial filibuster as a key reason for increased politicization of thejudiciary.[248]
In January 2022, Sinema and Democratic Senate colleague Joe Manchin voted against changing the Senate filibuster rule. The proposed rule change, which would have allowed certain voting rights bills to advance to the Senate floor without meeting the Senate's 60-vote threshold, was voted down by a 52–48 margin.[249] Days later, the Arizona Democratic Party executive committee censured Sinema for voting to retain the filibuster rule.[250]
In 2016, Sinema was one of five House Democrats to vote for a Republican-backed bill barring theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) from regulating broadband rates. Her vote broke from her party; other Democrats were strongly opposed to the measure, and President Obama said he would veto it if it passed.[251]
In 2019, Sinema was the sole Senate Democrat not to co-sponsor the Save the Internet Act, which would restore Obama-era regulations preventingISPs from throttling consumers' website traffic. She worked with Senate RepublicanRoger Wicker to develop their ownnet neutrality bill.[252]
Sinema married, and later divorced, her BYU classmate Blake Dain.[253][20] She is openlybisexual.[2] She had been reported to be the onlyatheist member ofCongress,[254][255] although she has rejected the label.[77]
In late 2025, an alienation of affection lawsuit was filed against Sinema for allegedly pursuing a relationship with her married bodyguard, Matthew Ammel, which became broader public knowledge in January 2026, when the case was moved to federal court.[256][257]
Sinema has completed numerousmarathons. In 2019, she completed a marathon in 3:28:17, which was fast enough for her (female) age group to qualify for theBoston Marathon. Two weeks before her Boston-qualifying race, she ran a three-mile race in 20:42, setting a record for women in Congress.[258] In 2020, she set a personal record of 3:21:45 and later in 2021, she broke her right foot while running a marathon, requiring her to use a hands-free crutch.[259]
On November 17, 2013, Sinema completed anIronman Triathlon in a little over 15 hours. She was the second active member of Congress, after SenatorJeff Merkley, to finish a long-distancetriathlon, and the first to complete an Ironman-branded race.[260] She completed the2015 Ironman World Championship inKona, Hawaii.[24]
Sinema, D-Ariz., joined with seven other Democrats and all Republicans to block an effort to debate raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour in the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package under consideration in the Senate.
Martha's opponent, Kyrsten Sinema, has received a "D" rating from the NRA.
In a lawsuit, the ex-wife of Ms. Sinema's onetime staff member accused her of showering him with gifts and breaking up their marriage.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| New constituency | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromArizona's 9th congressional district 2013–2019 | Succeeded by |
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| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forU.S. Senator fromArizona (Class 1) 2018 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. Senator (Class 1) from Arizona 2019–2025 Served alongside:Martha McSally,Mark Kelly | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Senator | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Senator | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Senator |
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