Mark Kelly retains his Arizona Senate seat in a crucial victory for Democrats

After a campaign in which Kelly positioned himself as a centrist, the senator defeated the Donald Trump-endorsed Blake Masters.

Democrat Mark Kelly was re-elected in Arizona, defeating his far-right opponent Blake Masters in a crucial contest that puts the Democrats one victory away from gaining control of the US Senate.

The Arizona campaign is one of a handful of battles targeted by Republicans in their quest to regain control of the Senate's 50-50 split. It was a litmus test for Kelly and other Democrats' gains in Arizona, a state that was previously consistently ruled by Republicans but has now emerged as a purple battleground.

Kelly's victory implies that the Democratic triumph in Arizona in 2020 (when Joe Biden upset Donald Trump) was not an exception. Other Arizona races, including the hotly contested governor's race between Democrat Katie Hobbs and Republican Kari Lake, were too close to call Friday night.

Democrats can keep control of the Senate with a tie-breaking vote from Vice President Kamala Harris if they win either the Nevada election, which is still too close to call, or the Georgia runoff next month. Republicans must now win both of those elections in order to gain a majority.

Kelly, a four-time spaceflight veteran, is married to former US congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who inspired the country with her recovery from a gunshot wound to the head during an assassination attempt in 2011 that killed six people and wounded 13. Kelly and Giffords went on to co-found a gun-control advocacy organisation.

Kelly's campaign centred on gaining the support of the state's independent voters. At times, he tried to separate himself from Joe Biden, portraying himself as a reasonable counterpoint to his opponent.

Masters, a Donald Trump-backed 36-year-old venture investor with no political experience, has questioned the 2020 election results and made bogus charges of election fraud in the weeks running up to Saturday.

Kelly was initially elected in 2020 to fill the balance of the late John McCain's Senate term. He had the benefit of incumbent status and raised more money than his opponent. Kelly maintained a modest lead in surveys leading up to the election, however his lead narrowed in the closing weeks.

He has stated that he will work to safeguard abortion access, which the majority of Arizonans feel should be a constitutional right. In terms of border security, the senator has attempted to separate himself from the Biden administration, describing the situation as a "mess." Kelly has called for the repeal of Title 42, a Trump-era public health regulation that utilises the COVID-19 epidemic to justify the deportation of migrants at the southern border.

Kelly's victory in 2020 handed Democrats control of both Senate seats in Arizona for the first time in 70 years. The move was fueled by the state's rapidly shifting demographics and Trump's disfavour.

Kelly's 2022 campaign centred on his support for abortion rights, Social Security protection, prescription price reductions, and preserving a steady water supply in the face of a drought that has reduced Arizona's cut of water from the Colorado River.

Masters, 36, is a venture entrepreneur with no political experience who received funding from billionaire tech investor Peter Thiel. Masters, like other Republicans running for statewide office in Arizona, disputed the 2020 election results and made bogus charges of election fraud. He erroneously claimed that the FBI was behind the January 6 insurgency, embraced the white nationalist "great replacement" ideology, and blamed black Americans for gun violence.

However, after a contentious primary, Masters struggled to raise funds and was forced to defend his controversial positions. He removed some of his more controversial positions from his website after the primary, but it wasn't enough for the moderate swing voters who decided the election.