CHICAGO, Illinois — Democrats put a bright spotlight on Phoenix Rep. Ruben Gallego at their national convention, underscoring the importance of his race with Republican Kari Lake for an open U.S. Senate seat.

Both hope to succeed Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, an independent who announced in March that she would not seek reelection. Democrats would struggle to keep their narrow majority if they lose in Arizona.

“I’m a dad, husband, congressman and the proudest Arizonan you will ever meet,” Gallego said in his speech on the final night of the Democratic National Convention, a few speakers ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris’ nomination acceptance speech.

Lake, endorsed by former President Donald Trump, had a prime-time speaking slot on the second night of the Republican National Convention in July. The former Phoenix television news anchor narrowly lost the 2022 governor’s race to Gov. Katie Hobbs.

Gallego is leading in the latest polls and has collected endorsements from Republicans and independents in recent weeks, but the race remains tight.

He has distanced himself this week from President Joe Biden and Harris on border security, criticizing them for failing to adequately secure the border.

Gallego made no mention of Lake, saving his fire for Trump, who he slammed for denigrating the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who was a prisoner of war for 5 ½ years during the Vietnam War.

“Politicians like Donald Trump, they don’t stand with us,” Gallego said. “They called patriots like Sen. McCain ‘losers.’ John McCain was an American hero. Show some respect!”

Now in his fifth House term, Gallego highlighted his combat experience in Iraq as a U.S. Marine and his passion for veterans’ care. In Congress he advocated for a 2022 law that provides health coverage for over 1 million veterans exposed to burn pits and toxins. Gallego openly talks about his PTSD.

“We have a duty to care for our patriots,” he said from the convention stage, before calling other Democrat veterans serving as elected officials in Congress and at the state and local level to join him.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, who lost her legs as a helicopter pilot in Iraq, was among them.

“These veterans represent the best of our country,” Gallego said.

“He has the hearts of the people in the United States,” delegate Robert Branscomb, vice chair of the Arizona Democratic Party, said afterward. “I’m proud to say I’m a fellow Arizonan with Ruben Gallego.”

Sen. Mark Kelly and his wife, former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, also spoke on the final night of the convention.

Joined by her husband, Giffords spoke as part of a segment devoted to gun violence. She recounted a 2011 shooting in Tucson that left six people dead and a dozen wounded. After a long recovery, she has become a leading voice on efforts to curb gun violence.

“A man tried to assassinate me,” she said. “I almost died, but I fought for my life, and I survived.”

Harris vetted Kelly as a potential running mate before choosing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

In his speech, the senator – a Navy combat pilot during the first Gulf War in 1990 and 1991 – warned that Trump would weaken U.S. security and is especially weak when it comes to Russia.

During Operation Desert Storm, he recalled, “America rallied our allies to kick out a tyrant who invaded a neighbor. Today, Vladimir Putin is testing whether we’re still that strong. Iran, North Korea and especially China watch closely.”

Kelly invoked Trump’s statement at a campaign event in February that he would let Russia do “whatever the hell they want.”

Trump faced backlash for the comment, and Kelly glossed over the context. The former president was saying that he would withhold U.S. protection from NATO allies that failed to spend enough on their own defense.

Kelly told Democrats Thursday night that Harris “has always championed America’s support for NATO, for Ukraine and for the Ukrainian people.”

Arizona delegates were excited to see so many state leaders center stage, and pleased at their treatment at the Democratic convention – befitting the state’s status as a 2024 battleground in both the Senate and presidential contests.

“I remember when Arizona would be placed in the rafters,” said state Sen. Brian Fernandez, a delegate from Phoenix. “Now, they’ve got a prime spot on the convention floor.”

For more stories from Cronkite News, visit cronkitenews.azpbs.org.

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Note: This story originally appeared on Cronkite News. It is published via a Creative Commons license. Cronkite News is produced by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

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