If only everyone got along with their ex.
The ex-wife of Arizona progressive Rep. Ruben Gallego is backing him to unseat incumbent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema on Monday — even though the couple separated when she became pregnant in 2016.
Kate Gallego, who has been mayor of Phoenix since 2019, said in a statement released by her ex-husband’s campaign: “I know firsthand his commitment to building a brighter future for Arizona.”
“We have real challenges facing our state that require a leader dedicated to fighting for working families and the most vulnerable,” added former Kate Widland. “He will do an excellent job for all of us as the next senator.”
Allies of Gallego have insisted the divorce was amicable and emphasized that the congressman co-parents the couple’s son, Michael.
Ruben, 44, married lobbyist Sydney Barron in 2021 and their daughter was born earlier this year.
Kate Gallego is supporting her ex-husband to run for Arizona senator. ZUMAPRESS.com
Presumptive Republican candidate Kari Lake has long questioned Gallego over the divorce, writing on X in October: “Ruben, you left your wife when she was 9 months pregnant. Maybe you should sit this thing out” after Democrats slammed his stance on abortion.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee has also cut ads knocking Gallego over the divorce.
“It appears the image recovery machine has been turned on at Gallego Headquarters,” NRSC spokesman Tate Mitchell told The Post Monday. “Although we’re sure he’d like everyone to forget about it, Ruben Gallego can’t escape the fact that he left his wife when she was almost nine months pregnant.”
Ruben Gallego has launched a progressive challenge for a highly coveted Arizona Senate seat. Alexandra Buxbaum/Shutterstock
In his memoir, due out in 2021, Gallego — a former Marine who fought in Iraq — suggested he was plagued by post-traumatic stress disorder and survivor’s guilt and the responsibilities of a new congressman and soon-to-be father.
“What am I after here?” Gallego reflects in his book: “A reason to live. Because I don’t think I deserve to be.”
The Arizona Senate race will be one of the most hotly contested battles of the 2024 cycle.
The congressman appeared on a collision course with Curry Lake. Polaris
Sinema, who left the Democratic Party to become an independent candidate late last year, filed to run for re-election in April, but has yet to officially launch his campaign.
Lake, an unsuccessful Republican candidate for governor in 2022, and Gallego, who has been in Congress since 2015, are widely expected to be the GOP and Democratic nominees.
Both the Gallego and Lake campaigns declined to comment on the record. Spokeswoman Kate Gallego did not immediately return a request for comment.
Both Kate and Ruben Gallego have tried to keep the details of their divorce under wraps. Jerry Harper
Republicans only need to win two seats next year to reclaim the upper house of Congress.
The Democrats defended 20 seats, along with three held by the Democratic party’s independents, including Sinema. Republicans only need to defend 11 in the 2024 cycle.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
