Mark Edward Kelly is an American retired astronaut, U.S. Navy captain, businessman, and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Arizona since 2020.
Advertisement
A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected in the special election following the death of Senator John McCain, defeating incumbent Republican Martha McSally.
Kelly flew combat missions during the Gulf War as a naval aviator before being selected as a NASA Space Shuttle pilot in 1996. Kelly announced his candidacy for Arizona’s Class 3 U.S. Senate seat in the 2020 special election on February 12, 2019.
He won the Democratic primary on August 4, 2020, and defeated incumbent Republican Martha McSally in the November 3, 2020, general election, becoming the first Democrat to win this seat since 1962. Kelly was sworn in on December 2, 2020.
Kelly is seeking reelection to a full term in the 2022 United States Senate election in Arizona against Republican Blake Masters.
Mark Kelly Family
Mark Edward Kelly and twin brother Scott Kelly are the sons of Richard and Patricia (née McAvoy) Kelly, two retired police officers. He is of Irish descent. He was born on February 21, 1964, in Orange, New Jersey, and raised in West Orange, New Jersey.
Kelly married Amelia Victoria Babis on January 7, 1989. They divorced in 2004. They have two daughters, Claudia and Claire Kelly.
Mark Kelly Wife Shooting
Giffords was shot in an assassination attempt on January 8, 2011, putting Kelly in the national spotlight.
On February 4, Kelly described the previous month as the hardest time of his life and expressed his gratitude for the enormous outpouring of support, good wishes and prayers for his wife. He said that he believed people’s prayers for her helped.
Advertisement
One of Giffords’s aides informed Kelly of the shooting almost immediately after it happened. He flew from Houston to Tucson with members of his family. En route, the Kellys received an erroneous news report that Giffords had died.
“The kids, Claudia and Claire, started crying. My mother almost screamed. I just walked into the bathroom, and, you know, broke down.” Calling family in Tucson, Kelly found out that the report was false and that she was alive and in surgery.
“It was a terrible mistake,” Kelly said. “As bad as it was that she had died, it’s equally exciting that she hadn’t.”
Mark Kelly Party
A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected in the special election following the death of Senator John McCain, defeating incumbent Republican Martha McSally.
Kelly announced his candidacy for Arizona’s Class 3 U.S. Senate seat in the 2020 special election on February 12, 2019.
He won the Democratic primary on August 4, 2020, and defeated incumbent Republican Martha McSally in the November 3, 2020, general election, becoming the first Democrat to win this seat since 1962. Kelly was sworn in on December 2, 2020.
Mark Kelly Approval Rating
In the campaign for U.S. Senate in Arizona, Democrat Mark Kelly edges Republican Blake Masters among those who say they definitely plan to vote in this year’s election. Kelly’s advantage has narrowed among the statewide electorate since September.
Kelly is currently +4 points against Masters among registered voters statewide, down from the 10-point lead he enjoyed earlier.
Mark Kelly Net Worth
Mark Kelly net worth: Mark Kelly is an American astronaut, engineer, and U.S. Navy captain who has a net worth of $20 million.
In addition to his senatorial salary of $174,000 per year, he has received nearly $2 million from speaking engagements, according to his Candidate Report (Amendment 1) disclosure statement.
Leave a Reply