Rep. Sinema releases first TV ad of her Senate campaign
Apr 9, 2018, 11:51 AM | Updated: 11:52 am
PHOENIX — The first TV ad for U.S. Rep. Kyrsten Sinema’s campaign for higher office have been released, emphasizing her longstanding support of veterans and law enforcement.
The ad featured the Arizona Democrat and her older brother Paul Sheldon, who said his independent sister fought for veterans and was “a friend to law enforcement.”
Sheldon served with the Marines and has been a Tucson police officer for almost 20 years.
The ad launched her campaign’s entry into the television market. That ad and another had been released on YouTube in March.
Sinema announced she was running for Senate in September 2017, a month before current seatholder and Republican Jeff Flake said he was not running for re-election when his term expired in January 2019.
The Republican field has been filling with U.S. Rep. Martha McSally of Tucson, former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and former state senator Kelli Ward. Democrat Deedra Abboud announced she would run for the seat in April 2017.
The commercial also pointed out that Sinema has been known for the reaching across the aisle in Washington chambers to get legislation passed.
She has taken fellow legislators to ask for federal shutdowns, repeatedly saying none should be paid during those times, including herself.
“I bring people together,” Sinema said in the ad, “because that’s how you get stuff done.”
Sinema’s campaign had raised $4 million by the end of last year and had a little over $5 million on hand, according to the nonpartisan, political money-tracking site OpenSecrets.
Candidates faced an April quarterly deadline to file finance data with the Federal Election Commission.