Democrat Rep. Ruben Gallego continues to hold a slight lead over Republican Kari Lake in Arizona's Senate race.
With 74% of the vote counted early Thursday morning, Decision Desk HQ showed Gallego with 50.1% of the vote and Lake with 47.9%. Green Party candidate Eduardo Quintana had 2%.
President-elect Donald Trump holds a 5½-point lead over Vice President Kamala Harris in the state's presidential race and has been projected to win the Grand Canyon State. The GOP presidential candidate thus leads 312-226 overall in the Electoral College.
Arizona counties that include cities Phoenix, Tucson, and Flagstaff contributed to Gallego's lead, with rural areas backing Lake.
"Arizona, This race is going to go down to the wire! We need ALL HANDS ON DECK to cure ballots and ensure the vote of every Arizonan counts," Lake posted Wednesday on X with a link for people to sign up and help Turning Point Action cure ballots.
Republicans are hoping Lake will prevail to add to their new Senate majority, which stands at 52-45.
Two other U.S. Senate races remain undecided, with Republican Dave McCormick leading Sen. Bob Casey in Pennsylvania and Democrat Sen. Jacky Rosen ahead of Sam Brown in Nevada.
Gallego has represented Arizona's 3rd Congressional District since 2015.
Lake, a former newscaster and a strong Trump supporter, lost the 2022 Arizona governor's race to Democrat Katie Hobbs.
The winner of the Arizona Senate race will replace Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., who won in 2018 as a Democrat.
Sinema left the Democratic Party two years ago after she antagonized the party's left wing. She considered running for a second term as an independent but bowed out when it was clear she had no clear path to victory.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.