Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) on Tuesday tapped outgoing Rep. Martha McSally Martha Elizabeth McSallyThe Hill's Campaign Report: Presidential polls tighten weeks out from Election Day Mark Kelly: Arizona Senate race winner should be sworn in 'promptly' New ABC/WaPost poll finds Trump edging Biden in Arizona, Florida MORE (R-Ariz.) to fill the seat of the late GOP Sen. John McCain John Sidney McCainThe Memo: Trump's strengths complicate election picture Mark Kelly: Arizona Senate race winner should be sworn in 'promptly' Cindy McCain: Trump allegedly calling war dead 'losers' was 'pretty much' last straw before Biden endorsement MORE.

McSally lost a bitterly fought Senate race in November against Sen.-elect Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.). The GOP congresswoman was appointed days after Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) announced that he’d resign from the Senate on Dec. 31.

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McSally will serve out the remaining two years of McCain's term, which expires in January 2021, and will face a special election for a full, six-year term in 2020.

"All her life, Martha has put service first — leading in the toughest of fights and at the toughest of times,” Ducey said in a Tuesday statement.

"With her experience and long record of service, Martha is uniquely qualified to step up and fight for Arizona’s interests in the U.S. Senate. I thank her for taking on this significant responsibility and look forward to working with her and Senator-Elect Sinema to get positive things done.”

McSally was considered a top prospect to replace Kyl, who was sworn into office in September, about a month after McCain died from brain cancer. He had hinted that he’d only serve in the Senate until the end of the year.

McSally, who made history as the first woman to fly a fighter jet in combat, was first elected to Congress in 2014.

She represented a Tucson-based swing seat, but took more hardline stances on immigration during the crowded Republican Senate primary. McSally also closely aligned herself with President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE throughout her Senate campaign.

McSally’s appointment comes even after some donors vented frustrations about a memo from the Republican's campaign team about her Senate loss.

She also recently apologized to the late senator’s widow, Cindy McCain, for not mentioning him when Trump signed the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 2019, according to The Arizona Republic.

Arizona is expected to have another hotly contested Senate race in 2020 as the state becomes a more competitive battleground.

Trump only won Arizona by less than 4 points in 2016, signaling an opening for Democrats in the 2018 cycle.

Last month, Sinema defeated McSally by more than 2 points in the race to replace retiring Sen. Jeff Flake Jeffrey (Jeff) Lane FlakeHow fast population growth made Arizona a swing state Jeff Flake: Republicans 'should hold the same position' on SCOTUS vacancy as 2016 Republican former Michigan governor says he's voting for Biden MORE (R), which was called almost a week after the Nov. 6 election.

Sinema will become the first female senator to represent the state, and Arizona will be one of nine states to have two women serving in the Senate.

Some Arizona Democrats considering a Senate run in 2020 are Rep. Ruben Gallego Ruben GallegoHispanic caucus report takes stock of accomplishments with eye toward 2021 Senators call on Pentagon to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes newspaper Hispanic Caucus campaign chief to mount leadership bid MORE (D) and Grant Woods, a former Republican attorney general who served as McCain’s chief of staff in the U.S. House.

-- Updated at 11:26 a.m.