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By Emma Paterson
Cronkite News
WASHINGTON – Newly elected Rep. Yassamin Ansari prefers to be in Phoenix as President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in. But freshman Sen. Ruben Gallego and veteran Rep. Greg Stanton will be among the Democrats on hand to witness his return to power.
The second inauguration of the divisive former president is putting civility to the test. Former first lady Michelle Obama is skipping it. So is former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
“I have a tradition of going to the MLK events in Phoenix,” Ansari said in a brief interview outside the House chamber. “I will be attending a march.”
A statement issued later by her office alluded to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob: “I fully support a peaceful transition of power and look forward to finding ways to reach across the aisle and work with my colleagues on ways to better the lives of Arizona families.”
Trump skipped Biden’s inauguration four years ago after failing to overturn the election.
Gallego’s rival for the Senate seat last fall, Kari Lake, also plans to attend the inauguration, she said on social media. It’s “an amazing week of history,” she said.
Trump wants to install Lake as head of Voice of America, the international broadcast news outlet backed by the U.S. government.
Forecasters say the day will be brutally cold, with highs in the low 20s and a windchill in the low teens, making it the coldest Inauguration Day since President Ronald Reagan’s second ceremony in 1985.
Stanton, now in his fourth term, said he will bring Mesa’s new mayor, Mark Freeman, as his guest.
“If there are issues you disagree on and go against your values and beliefs and what you think is right for the community, you fight it,” Stanton said Thursday at the Capitol. “And if there are areas where you can reach agreement you try to reach agreement. With the new administration coming in, I take the same approach.”
This will be Gallego’s first inauguration as a senator, after five terms in the House. The state’s senior senator, fellow Democrat Mark Kelly, has not said whether he plans to attend.
Three of the state’s nine House members are Democrats.
Like Ansari, 12-term Rep. Raúl Grijalva of Tucson is not expected to attend. He was diagnosed with lung cancer nearly a year ago and missed most House votes in 2024. He returned Jan. 3 for the start of the new session of Congress but has not cast a vote since then.
Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani of Tucson, recently elected to a second term, is eager to attend the historic event.
“Very optimistic about it. Very encouraged,” he said.
Under the Constitution, presidents are sworn in at noon on Jan. 20 in Washington.
Washington correspondents Madeline Bates and Samuel Travis contributed reporting.
For more stories from Cronkite News, visit cronkitenews.azpbs.org.
