Democrats lose Senate seats After the senator leaves, the majority is not in danger

Arizona US Senator Kirsten Sinema leaves the Democratic Party effective immediately. She continued as an independent member of the Senate. This does not immediately jeopardize the majority that the Democrats enjoy in this chamber of the US Parliament. But when it comes to important bills, things get tight.

In the midterm elections, in which Democrats made a small surprise gain, Democrats took 51 seats, compared to Republicans’ 49, including two independents.

In an open letter to the Arizona Republic, Sinema writes that today’s politicians focus more on denying victory than on improving the lives of Americans. “The average American is the loser,” says Sinema.

She is not the first independent member of the Senate. Angus King (Maine) and Bernie Sanders (Vermont) are also not members of the Democratic Party, but they usually vote Democrat. Sinema explicitly refused to say it would do the same. She has said she has no intention of angering the Senate. If you don’t vote with the Democrats and the votes are tied, Vice President Kamala Harris will have the deciding vote.

Kirsten Sinema has Dutch roots. Her great-grandfather left the Frisian town of Betgum for the United States in the 19th century.