02:09:05
After being raised a Mormon and graduating from Brigham Young University, Sinema left the church, earned a law degree and Ph.D., worked as a social worker, volunteered for Ralph Nader's presidential campaign, and, as the McSally campaign is quick to note, was outspoken in her opposition to the Iraq War.
But in an increasingly polarized political landscape, the third-term congresswoman has reshaped herself as a pragmatist and and one well-positioned to cater to an Arizona constituency accustomed to senatorial independence. Both Flake and McCain roiled the Trump White House over the past year and a half as they spoke out against the president and, as was the case when McCain cast the deciding vote against health care reform, sunk key items on the administration's agenda.
\"People who are just very practical and common sense and focused on solving the problems that everyday Arizonans face,\" she added, a description that one could imaging Flake and McCain using to describe their work since Trump's election.
It's debatable, however, whether the state's electorate still has an appetite for a senator so detached from the White House. Asked Tuesday whether he could have won the Republican primary, much less re-election in November, Flake was blunt.
\"Not a chance. Not a chance today,\" he told reporters Tuesday, hours before the state's primary was called. The senator noted that he was rooting for McSally, but acknowledged his party had to \"appeal to a broader electorate.\"
\"I think long-term, if we don't ... quit trying to drill down harder on the base and just give in to the politics of anger and resentment, we're going to lose big time,\" Flake said
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/Politics/flake-ap-er-180828_hpEmbed_18x13_384.jpg\")
In seeking to flip the Senate seat and bring the party one step closer to possibly winning a Senate majority in November, Arizona Democrats are focused on Sinema's potential to win over independents and moderate voters, particularly as the state's Republican Party moves to the right.
\"[Republicans] are alienating these moderate voters when it comes to voting, whether it's on issues like education or health care, they will side with the Democratic Party because it's a more reasonable adult-in-the-room approach to governing,\" said Anderson.
Anderson alluded to McSally's seeming embrace of the president over the course of the Republican primary. In her quest for her party's nomination, McSally faced two opponents in Arpaio and Ward who backed Trump with fervor ranging back to before his election. It remains to be seen whether McSally might return to her moderate roots -- she is a member of the centrist Republican Main Street Partnership -- in the general campaign.
\"She has already cast herself as a Trump loyalist. ... She has touted that she has a 97 percent voting record with him,\" Anderson said, adding. \"Any sort of pivot that she would attempt would fall flat.\"
According to 538's congressional tracker, McSally has voted with Trump 97.8 percent of the time. That said, Sinema has the highest percentage of any Democrat in Arizona, as the same tracker reports that she has voted with Trump 60.9 percent of the time, including on some legislation - like the effort to roll back parts of the banking bill Dodd-Frank - which earned liberal ire.
By contrast, Arizona's other Democratic representatives voted with Trump less frequently: Rep. Tom O'Halleran voted with Trump 54.4 percent of the time, Rep. Ruben Gallego voted with him 15.9 percent, and Rep. Raul Grijavla voted with Trump only 8.9 percent of the time.
McSally faces a tough road ahead, despite raising $7.6 million in her contentious primary, according to Open Secrets.
Turning to November, she could be at a slight disadvantage against Sinema, the first openly bisexual member of Congress, who after holding a commanding lead over Deedra Abboud throughout her primary race, amassed a steep fundraising stockpile.
The Democratic nominee raised over $10.5 million as of Aug. 8, according to Open Secrets, in a clear signal of her attention: the general election.
Sinema’s focus on November is also evidenced by her string of ads, in which, she highlights support for veterans and law enforcement, and casts herself as more of an independent and a mediator.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/Politics/martha-mcsally-file-ap-jef-180828_hpEmbed_19x14_384.jpg\")
In one ad, Sinema boasts a “fiercely independent record” and in another, she brands herself as someone who can “bring people together.”
Although Sinema easily captured her party’s backing for November, McSally fought a multi-pronged war for the Republican nomination. But now, she’s contending with possibly a more arduous uphill battle.
No matter the outcome, Arizona is set to send the first woman to the Senate in the state’s history. And that's appealing to some of Sinema's supporters.
\"It would be great [if she won] -- the first woman senator for Arizona,” Eden said.
ABC News' Mariam Khan contributed to this report.
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