Civibus

Biography

Rubén Marinelarena Gallego ( ROO-bən ghy-EH-goh; né Marinelarena; born November 20, 1979) is an American politician serving since 2025 as the junior United States Senator from Arizona. A member of the Democratic Party, he served from 2011 to 2014 as a member of the Arizona House of Representatives and from 2015 to 2025 as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Gallego was elected to Congress in 2014 as a progressive and drew attention for his combative social media presence, including criticism of Arizona senator Kyrsten Sinema, who opposed efforts to abolish the Senate filibuster to pass Democratic legislation. Democrats and progressive organizations encouraged him to challenge Sinema in the Democratic primary. In 2023, Gallego announced his candidacy for the 2024 U.S. Senate election in Arizona. Sinema later registered as an independent and chose not to seek reelection. Gallego rebranded himself as a moderate Democrat and defeated Republican nominee Kari Lake in the general election. Gallego is the first Latino to be elected to represent Arizona in the United States Senate. After taking office, he became one of the first two Colombian-American U.S. senators, along with Republican Bernie Moreno of Ohio.

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