Dems pressure Mark Kelly and Kysten Sinema to end the filibuster — and stop GOP voter suppression

As Arizona Republicans receive national attention for their widely-panned audit of the 2020 vote in Maricopa County, Arizona Democrats are urging the state's senators to end the filibuster.

"Arizona Democrats called on Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly to help eliminate a controversial procedural hurdle that allows Senate Republicans to block key legislation," the Arizona Republicreports. "At its state convention on Saturday, where hundreds of Democratic foot soldiers gathered virtually, the Arizona Democratic Party also seized on the spectacle of the Republican-led review of 2.1 million ballots from the 2020 election."

The filibuster is a parliamentary maneuver that essentially allows minority rule in the U.S. Senate.

"State committee members passed three resolutions, which are not binding but express the will of the party. One formalized the party's position on the U.S. Senate's legislative filibuster, which requires 60 votes for the chamber to act on most legislation. The filibuster is a major obstacle to advancing Biden's agenda in the tied Senate, where Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris casts the tie-breaking vote," the newspaper reported.

"Despite facing enormous pressure from both Democrats and Republicans on the filibuster, Sinema has said she would not reverse her position on keeping filibuster," the newspaper noted. "Kelly, who faces re-election in 2022, has not taken a public position on whether he supports eliminating the filibuster."

Ending the filibuster is widely seen as a necessary prerequisite for Democrats to pass the "For the People Act" to prevent state voter suppression bills that Republicans have passed multiple states.