Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* Confirming months of rumors, Rep. Abigail Spanberger announced this morning that she’s running for governor in Virginia in 2025. The Democrat had already said that she wouldn’t seek re-election to Congress next year.
* Speaking of Democrats leaving Capitol Hill, Rep. Brian Higgins of New York announced over the weekend that he’s not only giving up his Buffalo-area seat, he’s also resigning in February. Gov. Kathy Hochul will call a special election next year to fill the vacancy.
* Hoping to replace Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as the Republicans’ second-place presidential candidate, former Ambassador Nikki Haley’s campaign is launching a $10 million ad-buy in Iowa and New Hampshire. The spots will reportedly start reaching the public in the first week of December.
* Late last week, a federal appeals court ordered Louisiana’s Republican-led state government to adopt a new congressional map by Jan. 15. As NBC News’ report on this noted, a lower court has already ruled that the existing district map unfairly dilutes the power of the state’s Black voters.
* Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie visited Israel over the weekend, and the Republican took the opportunity to condemn Donald Trump’s foreign policy. * On the heels of Haley referring to Vivek Ramaswamy as “scum” during last week’s GOP presidential primary debate, the Republican entrepreneur’s campaign has begun selling “rebel scum” merchandise. The phrase echoes a line from “Star Wars” movies and video games. * Though Rep. Andy Kim had already indicated that he’s running for the U.S. Senate, the New Jersey Democrat formally launched his candidacy with an event on Friday night. The congressman intends to take on indicted Sen. Bob Menendez in a 2024 primary. * And in the latest example of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy holding a grudge against the Republican members who ousted him, the Californian told CNN that South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace doesn’t deserve to be re-elected.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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