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Senate Democratic majority is complicated: Kyrsten Sinema leaves the party and registers as an independent

The Arizona senator has come under fire from Democrats for delaying the president's agenda and opposing some of his legislation.

Kyrsten Sinema

(Wikimedia Commons)

Published by
Alejandro Baños

Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema is leaving the Democratic Party and will register as an independent. Through a message on her Twitter account, the congresswoman announced her decision for opposing "partisan politics" in Washington, D.C.:

In a natural extension of my service since I was first elected to Congress, I have joined the growing numbers of Arizonans who reject party politics by declaring my independence from the broken partisan system in Washington and formally registering as an Arizona Independent. Over the past four years, I’ve worked proudly with other Senators in both parties and forged consensus on successful laws helping everyday Arizonans build better lives for themselves and their families. Becoming an Independent won’t change my work in the Senate; my service to Arizona remains the same.

Since Joe Biden took office, Sinema and West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin have come under fire from the Democratic Party for objecting to and delaying some of the legislation on the president's agenda.

Speaking to CNN, the senator argued that she has never wanted to fit into the party structure:

I’ve never fit neatly into any party box. I’ve never really tried. I don’t want to. Removing myself from the partisan structure – not only is it true to who I am and how I operate, I also think it’ll provide a place of belonging for many folks across the state and the country, who also are tired of the partisanship.

Her change “does not change the control of the Senate”

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre thanked Sinema for supporting legislation enacted by the Biden Administration, although she noted that her switch does not influence the majority obtained by the Democratic Party in the Senate:

We understand that her decision to register as an independent in Arizona does not change the new Democratic majority control of the Senate, and we have every reason to expect that we will continue to work successfully with her. Senator Sinema has been a key partner on some of the historic legislation President Biden has championed over the last 20 months.

What the Oval Office media liaison doesn't account for is that two senators who often caucus with the Democratic Party and support its laws are independents: Bernie Sanders (Vermont) and Angus King (Maine).

The role of moderates falls

The runoff Senate election in Georgia, which was won by Democrat Raphael Warnock, has had direct effects on the role of the two moderate senators in the Democratic Party: Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema.

With an equal number of senators, Manchin and Sinema could moderate the proposals coming from the rest of the Democratic senators. The Anti-Inflation Act, which could commit up to $1 trillion in spending, was originally an omnibus bill that called for increasing spending by $3.5 trillion.

But with a 51-49 majority, the two moderate senators lose power. This may have been behind Kyrsten Sinema's decision.

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