Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) on Tuesday named Jon Kyl to fill the late John McCain’s Senate seat.

“There is no one in Arizona more prepared to represent our state in the U.S. Senate than Jon Kyl,” Ducey said in a statement. “He understands how the Senate functions, and will make an immediate and positive impact benefiting all Arizonans.”

Kyl, 76, previously served 18 years in the U.S. Senate, becoming the second-highest-ranked GOP senator before retiring in 2013. According to the Arizona Republic, he has agreed to serve at least through the end of this year. If Kyl chooses to step down at that point, Ducey will have to name another successor.

Kyl said he would not run for the seat in 2020.

Tom Williams via Getty Images Former Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), left, seen on July 10 as he escorts Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and Vice President Mike Pence to meetings with senators.

Kyl joined top K Street firm Covington & Burling shortly after his retirement in 2013, and was recently retained by Facebook to help the social media network combat partisan bias in its news distribution. Ducey contacted Kyl in the hours after McCain’s death on Aug. 25 to see if he’d return to Capitol Hill.

The governor said in his statement he was “deeply grateful” to Kyl for agreeing to succeed his friend and former colleague McCain.

“Every single day that Jon Kyl represents Arizona in the United States Senate is a day when our state is being well-served,” the statement read.

President Donald Trump, who was frequently critical of McCain, praised his replacement:

Jon Kyl will be an extraordinary Senator representing an extraordinary state, Arizona. I look forward to working with him! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 4, 2018

Cindy McCain, wife of the late senator, tweeted about Kyl on Tuesday, calling him “a dear friend”:

Jon Kyl is a dear friend of mine and John’s. It’s a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service to help the state of Arizona. — Cindy McCain (@cindymccain) September 4, 2018

Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) also praised the choice.

Governor Ducey has selected Senator Jon Kyl as Senator McCain’s replacement. What an excellent choice! There is no one more qualified and Arizona is well served. Kudos to Senator Kyl for his willingness to serve once again. — Jeff Flake (@JeffFlake) September 4, 2018

This story has been updated.

Eliot Nelson contributed to this report. </s> Former Arizona US Sen. Jon Kyl to replace John McCain

PHOENIX (AP) — Prolonging the uncertainty over who will fill the late John McCain's U.S. Senate seat, the governor of Arizona on Tuesday announced the appointment of former Sen. Jon Kyl but said he has only committed to serve until the end of the year.

Kyl, a Republican who retired from the Senate in 2012 to spend more time with his family, is currently shepherding Trump's nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. Kyl's appointment will make it possible for him to vote for the nomination.

But it's unclear what more Kyl, 76, will do in Washington. He said he agreed to serve briefly out of a "sense of duty" and will not run for the seat in 2020, when Arizona voters will decide who fills the seat through 2022. The seat will then be up again for a full six-year term.

Gov. Doug Ducey, also a Republican, said Kyl was "the best possible person, regardless of politics" for the job, and he hopes Kyl serves past the end of the year.

If Kyl does leave the Senate after the end of the current congressional term next Jan. 3, Arizona's governor can appoint another senator for the remaining year. By state law the senator will have to be a member of the same party as the departing one, in this case the GOP.

For now, Kyl will pad Republicans' margin in the narrowly divided Senate. They hold a 51-49 majority but that dwindled to a single vote while McCain stayed in Arizona for much of this year being treated for the brain cancer that killed him on Aug. 25.

The GOP is hoping Kyl will be a more reliable partisan vote than McCain, whose opposition to a partial repeal of President Obama's health care law pitched the party into turmoil last year.

Kyl is well-respected in Arizona and has been able to avoid many of the battles with activists that complicated McCain's career and that of the state's other senator, Jeff Flake, who is retiring because his feud with Trump made his re-election impossible.

Kyl's entire career in Washington overlapped with McCain's, and he served with the state's senior senator for three terms before stepping down. Kyl carved out a profile as a reliable conservative vote and a foreign policy expert.

McCain's widow, Cindy, tweeted: "Jon Kyl is a dear friend of mine and John's. It's a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service to help the state of Arizona."

Doug Cole, a veteran Republican consultant and former McCain aide, said Kyl was a good, safe pick.

"I think McCain would be very happy with the pick. Honors his legacy while putting some major horsepower for Arizona in the seat, at least for now," he said.

An attorney, Kyl speaks in a formal, reserved manner that is a sharp contrast to President Trump, and he belongs to an older, less populist vanguard of the GOP. At a news conference where he was introduced as McCain's replacement, Kyl said in a response to a question that he's only met Trump once, though he noted he is working for the White House by serving as Kavanaugh's so-called "sherpa."

With a nod toward McCain, Kyl said the president's "desire to jump into the middle of or be in the middle of a fight — and by the way that reminds me of somebody — can be detrimental in the end to what he's trying to achieve."

The unusual timing of Kyl's appointment could work out for another Arizona Republican who wants to become a U.S. senator — Rep. Martha McSally.

She's currently locked in a tough campaign against Democratic Rep. Kyrsten Sinema for the Senate seat Flake is vacating. Should she lose, McSally — a former Air Force colonel who once worked on Kyl's staff — could be appointed to the McCain seat if Kyl vacates it in January.

Filling McCain's seat marks a turning point in Arizona political history. The seat has been held by two men who were heralded as giants of the Senate: McCain took the seat once held by Sen. Barry Goldwater after McCain had served in the House of Representatives.

The choice of Kyl will also have political consequences for Ducey. He's up for re-election this November against Democratic challenger David Garcia.

For Republican voters who are on the fence about Ducey, a choice they dislike could cause them to withdraw their support for the incumbent or stay home on Election Day. </s> Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey has selected former Republican Sen. Jon Kyl to fill late Sen. John McCain’s vacant seat, according to three sources with direct knowledge of the decision.

The Arizona Republic first reported the pick.

Ducey will appoint Kyl, who served three terms alongside McCain and became the Senate minority whip before retiring in 2012, to replace McCain until a 2020 special election to decide who holds it for the final two years of McCain’s term. McCain, who died a week ago after a battle with brain cancer, won his final six-year term in 2016.

Kyl's selection is likely to receive praise from allies of both President Donald Trump and McCain. Kyl has helped direct Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, through the Senate ahead of his confirmation hearings this week. The former senator also had a close relationship with McCain.

Cindy McCain, the late senator's wife, tweeted her praise of the choice shortly after it became public, calling him "a dear friend of mine and John’s. It’s a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service to help the state of Arizona."

Since leaving the Senate, Kyl has been a lobbyist for Covington in Washington. </s> PHOENIX -- The governor of Arizona announced Tuesday that he will appoint former Sen. Jon Kyl to fill the late Sen. John McCain's seat in the U.S. Senate.

Gov. Doug Ducey made the announcement on Twitter minutes before a scheduled news conference.

Kyl, a Republican, is currently shepherding Trump's nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. Kyl's appointment may make it possible for him to vote for the nomination.

Ducey, also a Republican, added the hashtag .KavanaughConfirmation to his announcement.

Ducey says Kyl has committed to serve through the end of this year and the governor hopes he will serve longer.

Either way, Kyle is expected to be a placeholder, not running in 2020, when voters will get to decide who fills the remainder of McCain's seat through 2022. Then the seat will be up again for a full six-year term.

Kyl, an experienced foreign policy hand, will be entering a narrowly divided Senate where Republicans could gain or lose seats in November.

The GOP is hoping he'll be a more reliable partisan vote than McCain, whose opposition to a partial repeal of President Obama's health care law pitched the party into turmoil last year.

Kyl is well-respected in Arizona and has been able to avoid many of the battles with activists that complicated McCain's career and that of the state's other senator, Jeff Flake, who is retiring because his feud with Trump made his re-election impossible.

McCain's widow, Cindy, tweeted: "Jon Kyl is a dear friend of mine and John's. It's a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service to help the state of Arizona."

Doug Cole, a veteran Republican consultant and former McCain aide, said Kyl was a good, safe pick.

"I think McCain would be very happy with the pick. Honors his legacy while putting some major horsepower for Arizona in the seat, at least for now," he said.

Filling McCain's seat marks a turning point in Arizona political history. That seat in particular has been held by two men who were heralded as giants of the Senate: McCain took the seat once held by Sen. Barry Goldwater after he had served in the House of Representatives.

The choice will also have political consequences for Ducey. He's up for re-election this November against Democratic challenger David Garcia.

For Republican voters who are on the fence about Ducey, a choice they dislike could cause them to withdraw their support for the incumbent or stay home on Election Day.

Arizona law requires the governor to appoint a member of the same political party to fill a seat opened by the departure of a senator.

McCain's office said an estimated 15,000 people came to see the late senator as he lay in state in the Arizona state capitol for a public viewing several days after his death.

Nearly 3,500 people gathered at the North Phoenix Baptist Church the following day for a memorial service where former Vice-President Joe Biden spoke. </s> Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey plans to appoint former senator Jon Kyl, a fellow Republican, to succeed the late-senator John McCain (R), people familiar with his plans said Tuesday.

Kyl served in the Senate from 1995 until 2013. More recently, he guided President Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court, Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh, as he navigated meetings with senators.

McCain’s widow, Cindy McCain, appeared to confirm the decision on social media, tweeting: Jon “Kyl is a dear friend of mine and John’s. It’s a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service to help the state of Arizona.”

McCain died Aug. 25 after battling brain cancer. He was 81.

Kyl, 76, served alongside McCain in the Senate and is a reliable conservative vote. One of the first votes he will cast when he is sworn in as senator will be on the confirmation of Kavanaugh to the high court.

McCain has been absent from the Senate since December as he underwent cancer treatment. Kyl’s appointment would give Republicans their full contingent of 51 senators.

This story will be updated. </s> Former US Republican Senator Jon Kyl is Arizona Governor Doug Ducey’s pick to fill the US Senate seat from Arizona vacated by John McCain, who died last month, the governor said on Tuesday.

Kyl, 76, served with McCain in the Senate and rose to the position of Republican whip, the second-highest leadership post in his party’s Senate leadership before retiring in 2013.

“There is no one in Arizona more prepared to represent our state in the U.S. Senate than Jon Kyl,” Ducey said of his fellow Republican in a statement. “He understands how the Senate functions and will make an immediate and positive impact benefiting all Arizonans.”

McCain’s wife Cindy McCain offered her congratulations to Kyl on Twitter. “Jon Kyl is a dear friend of mine and John’s. It’s a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service to help the state of Arizona,” she wrote.

Once Kyl is sworn in, Republicans will return to the 51 seats they held in the 100-member Senate before McCain’s death. Democrats control 49 seats, including two independents who align with them. While no date has been announced for Kyl to take the oath of office, a swearing-in typically occurs promptly after the governor’s appointment.

Republican President Donald Trump had long feuded with McCain and did not attend the senator’s memorials in Arizona and Washington over the past week, at McCain’s request.

McCain, who died of brain cancer at age 81 on Aug. 25, would have been up for re-election to his seventh term in November 2022.

McCain’s fellow Arizonan, retiring U.S. Senator Jeff Flake, who has been one of the loudest Republican critics of Trump, praised the pick on Twitter.

“What an excellent choice!” Flake wrote. “There is no one more qualified and Arizona is well served. Kudos to Senator Kyl for his willingness to serve once again.”

Kyl served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives before he was first elected to the Senate in 1994.

He retired at the end of his third term in January 2013. He voted against the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare.

It was the sometimes more moderate McCain who last year thwarted fellow Republicans’ attempts to undo Obamacare in a dramatic vote shortly after being diagnosed with cancer in July 2017.

Following Ducey’s announcement, Kyl won quick praise from an opposition Democrat.

Representative Steny Hoyer, the No. 2 Democrat in the House of Representatives, said given that the Arizona governor was “not going to appoint somebody who is going to vote with us, it’s a pretty good appointment.” Hoyer was responding to a reporter’s question about Kyl’s selection.

Hoyer served with Kyl in the House and was in Democratic leadership at the same time Kyl was in Senate Republican leadership.

Kyl now works as a lobbyist at the law firm Covington & Burling and is helping to shepherd U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh through the confirmation process.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App </s> The Arizona governor appointed the former senator to replace McCain

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey has chosen the person to succeed John McCain after his recent passing, and that will be former Senator Jon Kyl. The announcement is to be made in a press conference later today. Kyl is considered to be well-liked, and before his death, John McCain said he trusted that the governor would pick the best person.

The New York Times is reporting that Governor Ducey tweeted out this information this morning.

Jon Kyl was the rare choice that was acceptable to both McCain and Trump supporters, so he seemed to be a natural choice. Kyl spoke kindly of McCain at his Arizona memorial service last week but lately has been spending a great deal of his time guiding Supreme Court appointee Brett Kavanaugh through the process.

Kyl has only committed to serving through January even though John McCain’s term runs until 2020 when a special election would be triggered, but he is not interested in running for office again in Arizona.

In one of his last interviews, John McCain said he would not offer the governor any guidance on his choice, and Governor Ducey confirmed this. Kyl spoke out to say that he would immediately cut ties with the clients he serves as a lobbyist for the law firm of Covington & Burling, and he thanked John McCain for his service.

Today, John McCain’s widow Cindy gave her seal of approval to the choice of Jon Kyl for the vacated seat. Mrs. McCain said that Kyl is “a dear friend” and that it is “a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service.”

Governor Ducey seemed hopeful that soon-to-be Senator Kyl will stay in McCain’s seat until 2020, but he admitted that he hasn’t been promised that at this time, says CNN.

“I haven’t been able to get that assurance from Sen. Kyl yet. What I have gotten is a commitment to serve Arizona through at least this session of Congress, and it’s my hope that he serves longer. I’m hoping that the senator will consider serving longer.” </s> Former Sen. Jon Kyl will replace the late Sen. John McCain in the Senate, according to reports.

AZ Central reports that Kyl, who served in the Senate from 1995 to 2013, will be Gov. Doug Ducey's choice to fill the empty seat. Cindy McCain confirmed the appointment via Twitter and congratulated Kyl.

Kyl, 76, will hold the seat until 2020.

McCain served in the Senate from 1987 until his death at age 81 Aug. 25. </s> Prolonging the uncertainty over who will fill the late John McCain's U.S. Senate seat, the governor of Arizona on Tuesday announced the appointment of former Sen. Jon Kyl but said he has only committed to serve until the end of the year.

"It's my hope that he serves longer." Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, said as he announced the pick at the Arizona Capitol. He said Kyl was "the best possible person, regardless of politics."

Kyl, a Republican who retired from the Senate in 2012 to spend more time with his family, is currently shepherding Trump's nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. Kyl's appointment will make it possible for him to vote for the nomination.

But it's unclear what more Kyl, 76, will do in Washington. He said he agreed to serve briefly out of a "sense of duty" and will not run for the seat in 2020, when Arizona voters will have their first decision on who fills the remainder of McCain's seat through 2022. The seat will then be up again for a full six-year term.

If Kyl does not serve after the end of the current congressional term on Jan. 3, 2019, Arizona's governor can appoint another senator for the remaining year. By state law the senator will have to be a member of the same party as the departing one, in this case the GOP.

For now, Kyl will pad Republicans' margin in the narrowly divided Senate. They hold a 51-49 majority but that dwindled to a single vote while McCain stayed in Arizona for much of this year being treated for the brain cancer that killed him on Aug. 25.

The GOP is hoping Kyl will be a more reliable partisan vote than McCain, whose opposition to a partial repeal of President Obama's health care law pitched the party into turmoil last year.

Kyl is well-respected in Arizona and has been able to avoid many of the battles with activists that complicated McCain's career and that of the state's other senator, Jeff Flake, who is retiring because his feud with Trump made his re-election impossible.

Kyl's entire career in Washington overlapped with McCain's and he served with the state's senior senator for three terms before stepping down. Kyl carved out a profile as a reliable conservative vote and a foreign policy expert.

McCain's widow, Cindy, tweeted: "Jon Kyl is a dear friend of mine and John's. It's a great tribute to John that he is prepared to go back into public service to help the state of Arizona."

Doug Cole, a veteran Republican consultant and former McCain aide, said Kyl was a good, safe pick.

"I think McCain would be very happy with the pick. Honors his legacy while putting some major horsepower for Arizona in the seat, at least for now," he said.

Filling McCain's seat marks a turning point in Arizona political history. That seat in particular has been held by two men who were heralded as giants of the Senate: McCain took the seat once held by Sen. Barry Goldwater after he had served in the House of Representatives.

The choice will also have political consequences for Ducey. He's up for re-election this November against Democratic challenger David Garcia.

For Republican voters who are on the fence about Ducey, a choice they dislike could cause them to withdraw their support for the incumbent or stay home on Election Day.

McCain's office said an estimated 15,000 people came to see the late senator as he lay in state in the Arizona state Capitol for a public viewing several days after his death.
Jon Kyl will replace John McCain as Senator of Arizona.