Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* With former Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz having given up his seat, Donald Trump earlier this week publicly urged Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis to run. Hours later, Patronis resigned from his position and kicked off his candidacy.
* In related news, with Republican Rep. Michael Waltz giving up his seat to serve in Trump’s White House, the president-elect also said he’d support GOP state Sen. Randy Fine if he ran. Three days later, Fine launched his congressional campaign.
* There are only three U.S. House races that haven’t yet been called, and one of the closest is in Iowa, where Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks appears to have a tiny advantage over her Democratic rival. This week, the GOP incumbent issued a fundraising appeal that accused Democrats of attempting to “steal the House Majority.” There is literally no evidence of Democrats trying to “steal” anything, and even if Miller-Meeks were to lose, Republicans would still have a majority in the House next year.
* We don’t yet know who the next chair of the Democratic National Committee will be, but party officials this week sketched out the process of choosing outgoing DNC Chair Jaime Harrison’s successor. The new leader will be chosen on Feb. 1, following four public forums held throughout January. * In the wake of Trump tapping former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to serve as the next director of national intelligence, Mother Jones published an interesting report on the many political action committees that Gabbard has created. * And as Vice President Kamala Harris prepares to leave office, what’s the Democrat’s next move? Politico reported this week on a possible gubernatorial campaign in California in 2026, or a possible second presidential campaign in 2028. The vice president, the report added, “has been instructing advisers and allies to keep her options open.”
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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