Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* In Virginia’s congressional special election, Democrat James Walkinshaw cruised to a landslide victory, prevailing by roughly 50 points, and will soon succeed his former boss, the late Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly. Once Walkinshaw is sworn in, there will be 213 House Democrats to 219 House Republicans, with three vacancies remaining.
* As expected, the Republican-led state House in Missouri advanced a partisan scheme to eliminate one of the state’s two Democratic congressional districts. Donald Trump wrote via social media soon after, “The Missouri Senate must pass this Map now, AS IS, to deliver a gigantic Victory for Republicans in the ‘Show Me State,’ and across the Country. I will be watching closely.”
* With 55 days remaining before Election Day in Virginia, the latest Virginia Commonwealth University poll found former Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger leading Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, 49% to 40%.
* In Rhode Island, incumbent Gov. Dan McKee is apparently moving forward with his plans to run for a second term, but he won’t run unopposed in the Democratic primary: Former CVS Health executive Helena Foulkes, who narrowly lost to McKee three years ago, launched her statewide bid this week.
* Appointed Sen. Ashley Moody will seek a full term of her own next year, but the Florida Republican won’t run unopposed: Jennifer Jenkins, who unexpectedly scored a 10-point victory in a school board race in a conservative-leaning southeast Florida county a few years ago, is moving forward with a Democratic Senate campaign against the incumbent.
* As a rule, congressional leaders on Capitol Hill nearly always support their own members’ re-election efforts. This year, however, the White House is desperately trying to bring down Republican Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky, and House GOP leaders are apparently fine with that.
* And as September gets underway, there are plenty of interesting races to watch this month, and the fine folks at Bolts put together a helpful list.
