Kyrsten Sinema's Democratic challenger gets Nancy Pelosi to headline fundraiser in rare move

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is headlining a fundraiser for Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), the lawmaker running for Senate against Democrat-turned-independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, reported NBC News on Tuesday.

"Pelosi's presence at the fundraiser, which will be held virtually on Thursday evening, is notable; Pelosi, a California Democrat, has not formally endorsed Gallego and rarely involves herself in Democrat-on-Democrat matchups," reported Kate Santaliz. "But Sinema left the Democratic Party and officially registered as an independent late last year, just days after Democrats reached a slim 51-49 majority in the Senate. Sinema has not said whether she will run for re-election in 2024."

Pelosi, who served as the leader of House Democrats for nearly two decades and served four terms as Speaker of the House, is renowned in Washington for her fundraising prowess.

"Gallego, a four-term congressman and retired Marine, has been highly critical of Sinema and announced a bid for her seat in January. His office did not respond to a request for comment on the fundraiser with Pelosi," said the report. "Pelosi has not weighed in on many 2024 races so far. In an unusual move, she endorsed Rep. Adam Schiff in California's wide-open Democratic primary in February to succeed the retiring Sen. Dianne Feinstein."

Sinema worked as a cross-party negotiator for much of her time in office, being at the center of key deals like the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act; however, she came under furious criticism from her own party for insisting on carveouts for private equity in her legislation; for standing against reforms to Senate rules to end Republican obstruction on issues like abortion and voting rights; and for her refusal to engage with constituents.

Sources have indicated Sinema wants to run for another term as an independent, but she has not formally announced her decision to do so. Polling is mixed on whether Sinema would siphon more Democratic or Republican votes if she entered the race; however, polls broadly agree that she is highly unpopular among Arizona voters and would place last in a three-way race.