Former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords appeared with her former aide Ron Barber at a get-out-the-vote concert in Tuscon Saturday in the final push before the special election between Barber and Republican Jesse Kelly over her old seat. Giffords stepped down in January to focus on her recovery and asked Barber to run for her seat.
Giffords’ husband Mark Kelly spoke on Giffords’ behalf at the event. “It was incredibly hard for her to resign,” Kelly said, with Giffords and Barber beside him. “And the person she knew could represent this district like she did is standing to my left.”
After Kelly spoke, Giffords thanked the audience herself: “Thank you for your support,” she said. “Thank you very much.”
The June 12 special election between Barber and Kelly will be very close — Kelly lost the seat to Giffords in 2010 in one of the closest races in the country last election cycle.
