Former Democratic senator joins conservative Washington news outlet as columnist

Former Democratic senator turned independent Kyrsten Sinema is joining the Washington Reporter as a contributing columnist, the outlet announced Monday.

"Senator Sinema is deeply respected across the aisle and brings a rare perspective shaped by years in Congress," founders Brian Colas and Garrett Ventry said in a statement. "Her column will be an inside look at some of the most consequential policy debates." 

The two continued, "This is another step in establishing the Reporter as an independent, nonpartisan outlet dedicated to serious reporting and real policy insights. The Reporter will be announcing more contributing columnists in the coming weeks."

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In a comment to Fox News Digital, Colas explained that the Washington Reporter reached out to Sinema's team to provide a different perspective for its more conservative audience.

"The Reporter is a center-right publication, but our aim is to reach a bipartisan audience, and that's why we're adding some columnists who will speak to both independents and Democrats," Colas said. "For Sen. Sinema, our Republican audience also find her insights fascinating, especially some of the policy debates like AI and drug pricing and financial services."

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Sinema, a former senator from Arizona, fell out with the Democratic Party after initially opposing then-President Joe Biden's Build Back Better plan and expressing support for the filibuster despite party pressures to eliminate it.

In 2022, Sinema changed her party affiliation to independent and did not run for re-election in 2024.

Despite the backlash from her party, Colas told Fox News Digital that the overall response to Sinema joining the Washington Reporter has been largely positive.

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"We've had a lot of offices reach out and say this is a fascinating move and we look forward to seeing or reading what Sen. Sinema thinks about issues because they see her as someone who can speak across the aisle and actually understands how legislation gets done. So the feedback has been unanimously positive," Colas said.

Colas said Sinema will join former Politico reporter Rachael Bade in the outlet's efforts to broaden its audience.

The New York Post reported in December that the Justice Department and FBI under the Biden administration considered opening a criminal investigation against Sinema after she left the Democratic Party.