By Jeremy Duda | Arizona Mirror
(***This article has been updated to include Kelly’s opposition to the addition of new seats to the U.S. Supreme Court. He initially took no position on the issue)
Mark Kelly opposes adding new seats to the U.S. Supreme Court, a proposal that some Democrats are floating if Senate Republicans confirm a replacement for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Kelly, the Democratic nominee against Republican U.S. Sen. Martha McSally, initially took no position on the idea of packing the Supreme Court, instead only criticizing both Democrats’ threats to add new justices and Republicans’ plans to hold confirmation hearings for President Donald Trump’s nominee to replace Ginsburg.
“The Senate should be focused on passing urgently needed coronavirus relief for Arizonans — something they’ve pushed off for months — not rushing a vote on a lifetime nomination to the Supreme Court or issuing hypothetical threats about what will happen if the vacancy is filled,” Kelly said in a statement his campaign provided to Arizona Mirror.
“Hundreds of thousands of Arizonans are still without work, small businesses are struggling to stay afloat, and still Washington is engaging in divisive politics that take us further from addressing this public health and economic crisis.”