PHOENIX — Arizona could be a battleground state in the 2020 presidential election if next year continues a trend seen over the last four years.
President Donald Trump won the historically Republican-strong state by less than 100,000 votes over Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016, and Democrat Kyrsten Sinema edged out Republican Martha McSally in the 2018 Senate race.
An interactive map featured in 12 News' Decision 2020: Battleground Arizona special on Thursday night showed a number of Maricopa County precincts along Loop 101 voted for both Trump and Sinema.
Political analyst Garrett Archer told Team 12's Tram Mai that these suburban precincts could be the key to Democrats winning the 2020 presidential election.
Archer said Republicans like Trump and McSally -- who is up for election next year after being appointed to former Sen. Jon Kyl's seat in December -- need to stop that pattern from growing it or reversing it altogether in order to keep the state red.
But, Archer added, there is still more room for Democrats to grow within Maricopa County, which makes up 62% of Arizona's voting population.