Pro-science group bids to draft Mark Kelly for 2020 Senate race

Yvonne Wingett Sanchez | The Republic | azcentral.com

A pro-science group that helped elect nine federal candidates in 2018 has launched an effort to recruit retired astronaut Mark Kelly to run for the Democratic nomination for Arizona’s 2020 Senate race.

Kelly, the husband of former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., and a former Navy combat pilot, has been named as a potential 2020 candidate. But the Tucson resident has not said whether he intends to enter the race.

A spokesperson for Kelly confirmed Kelly's interest in running in 2020.

"Arizonans live with the impact of climate change every day," said Rodd McLeod. "It's encouraging to see folks in the science and tech communities spurring us to deal with these serious problems. Mark is considering running for U.S. Senate in order to address climate change, wage growth and many other serious issues."

314 Action, a nonprofit political action committee that recruits, trains and bolsters the candidacies of scientists and candidates with STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) backgrounds, is spending six figures on a social media campaign aimed at recruiting Kelly for the race and raising awareness about his biography.

Kelly supporters can sign petition

Keshia Butts/Cronkite News

On DraftMarkKelly.org, supporters can sign a petition to persuade Kelly to run for the special election, where the winner will serve the final two years of the late Sen. John McCain’s term. McCain, the 2008 GOP presidential nominee, died Aug. 25 after a battle with brain cancer.

The Washington, D.C.-based group brings money, voter lists, foot soldiers and a network of members who care deeply about public policy rooted in fact, not political ideology. Expect to see the group's advertising on social media, including Instagram and Facebook.

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Nine of the candidates the group backed during the 2018 cycle won seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, the largest number of scientists ever elected, according to the group.

Kelly co-founded gun group after wife was shot

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Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly launch Arizona Coalition for Common

Kelly is the first potential candidate the group is backing during the 2020 cycle, 314 Action Executive Director Joshua Morrow said.

“Mark Kelly first went to space in 2001,” Morrow said. “His last trip to space was in 2011. In the course of ten years, he got to watch from space the impact and the devastation climate change has had on our climate, and I think that’s a perspective that very few people can very practically say they have.”

Kelly also co-founded the gun-control organization Americans For Responsible Solutions after his wife survived a near-fatal assassination attempt at a 2011 constituent event near Tucson. Six people died and 12 were injured.

The winner of the 2020 race would face re-election in 2022 for a full six-year term.

Gallego, Woods also could run

Sean Logan/The Republic

Other possible contenders include Democratic U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego, a former combat veteran who is also the star of a recruitment effort. The Latino Victory Project, a political action committee that supports Latino candidates, launched a campaign to draft him to the Senate race last year.

Grant Woods, a former Republican, former state attorney general and close friend and onetime staff member to McCain, is also considering a bid for the seat. He has met with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., about a potential run and spent part of this week talking to leading Democrats and Democratic groups in southern Arizona.

It is unclear whether Republican Martha McSally, who lost her 2018 Senate bid to Democrat Kyrsten Sinema, will face a competitive primary.

All told, nearly all candidates and outside groups spent at least $122 million on Arizona's 2018 Senate race.

Weeks after McSally’s loss, Republican Gov. Doug Ducey appointed her to the seat McCain once held. The appointment came in mid-December, following the announcement that Jon Kyl planned to retire from his appointment to McCain’s seat.

Michael Chow/The Republic

Follow the reporter on Twitter and Facebook. Contact her at yvonne.wingett@arizonarepublic.com and 602-444-4712.