Democratic Senate Candidates On Nantucket Friday For Fundraising Event

Just days after a group of Republican Senate candidates gathered on Nantucket for a fundraising event, two incumbent Democratic Senate candidates will be on the island Friday seeking a financial boost for their reelection campaigns.

Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, Georgia Senator Rev. Raphael Warnock and a "special guest" - former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who is Kelly's wife - will be on Nantucket for an event hosted by Ian Simmons and Liesel Pritzker Simmons.

The fundraiser is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday, with attendees being asked to commit to "giving levels" starting at $1,000 and up to $11,600.

Kelly, a retired astronaut and U.S. Navy captain, was elected to the Senate in Arizona during the 2020 special election following the death of Sen. John McCain.

Giffords, who is married to Kelly, was shot in the face during an assassination attempt in Tuscon in 2011,. But she survived the attack and managed to regain most of her motor functions while becoming a leading gun control advocate.

Rev. Warnock was elected to the Senate in a runoff election in Georgia in Jan. 2021, defeating Republican Kelly Loeffler.

The event on Nantucket on Friday is also being hosted by Sue Ellen and Mark Alderman, Joshua Bekenstein, Maria and Peter Kellner, Sandra Urie and Frank Herron, and Congressman Seth Moulton.

The visit by Kelly, Giffords, and Warnock is just the latest in a series of political fundraising gatherings on Nantucket for candidates from both sides of the aisle. Earlier this week it was Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who attended an event at the home of businessman James Pallotta, followed by a group of five GOP Senate candidates who visited the home of Bob Reynolds for a reception and dinner. And in mid-July, First Lady Jill Biden touched down on Nantucket for a fundraiser in support of the Democratic Grassroots Victory Fund at the home of Frank Herron and Sandra Urie.