Since Mayor Sheng Thao was recalled weeks ago, one of the highest profile potential candidate to run in the special election to replace her is Loren Taylor. He was previously the preferred choice by former Mayor Libby Schaaf although Thao barely defeated him in the 2022 Mayoral Race in the ranked choice process.
Barbara Lee has been pushed to run although I honestly don’t see her running. Reason being is that her mentor, the late Ron Dellums, ran in the mayoral race in 2006 but was a disaster as mayor. I don’t think it would help Lee to potentially risk her legacy like this even though her politics and background fit Oakland and its character.
I’d prefer this race have Taylor and other fresh faces to run so we have a real choice.
Libby Schaaf (who supported the Thao recall) at least was re-elected and is now running for CA Treasurer. Pending that, the last Oakland mayor who really moved up from it was Jerry Brown, and he of course had a long previous career as a statewide official with national significance.
There's been talk on here over other candidates besides Schaaf to chose from in the CA Treasurer race. Schaaf comes in with having extremely low approval ratings exiting office as Mayor of Oakland. Her having supported the recall of Thao isn't exactly going to change the sentiment Oakland residents have had towards her.
I suspect she's taking lower political risk by going for a less high profile race as opposed to if she's running for Governor. It's a smart move but that doesn't mean I'd be inclined to voting for Schaaf for CA Treasurer.
I've lived in Berkeley most of my life and Lee has been an outstanding Representative in Congress.
However, she fits the profile of a legislator instead of being an executive in office. That said, if she endorses a mayoral candidate in the race, it can certainly add weight.
When Lee endorsed fellow Mills College alumna matter Lateefah Simon in the CA-12 race early on, Simon had already sealed the deal for winning CA-12. After all, Lee won re-election to CA-12 in 2022 with at least 90% points.
Florida Dem state rep Hillary Cassell switched parties, the second such dem since the election. Are these legit conversions or just stand-for-nothing politicians looking to get some bills passed in the shithole that is Destanisland and probably eventually cash in. She won by 7 in 2022 so there is a possibility of getting this one back.
It's truly amazing how many "Democratic" state legislators are actually conservatives who only run as Democrats due to the lean of their district, and who will switch parties at the drop of a hat if their district starts to vote Republican.
I guess Cassel's private reaction to Tricia Cotham's infamous party switch in North Carolina must have been "What a great idea!".
Baker can talk to Larry Hogan for insight on how that would probably work out, especially in a midterm when his party will feel the brunt of negative voter feelings.
Massachusetts and Vermont are the only states more Democratic than Maryland, but Baker did win by significantly more than Hogan in 2018.
Markey is pretty old and might not be able to put up as vigorous a campaign as Alsobrooks, but I doubt it matters in a Trump midterm. I’d prefer he step down for a younger Democrat at this point though.
If Baker really wanted to be a Senator, then he'd probably have done like Hogan (who wasn't particularly enthusiastic about the prospect) and run this year against Elizabeth Warren.
Warren seems to be more of a lightning rod, maybe in part due to her greater national prominence and presidential campaign, and often underperforms the party line, though she would likely have won even against Baker.
There are going to be special elections (likely in the spring) to replace the House Republicans who vacated their seats to join the Trump administration. We’re not likely to win any of them, but I’ll be curious to see how much we outperform the baseline in those districts.
Also, NJ and VA will have gubernatorial elections in the fall of next year.
Yes, with Glenn Youngkin being termed out of office, the VA-GOV race is bound to be competitive for sure. So far from what seems to be going in the race. Lt. Governor Winsome Sears seems to be the leading GOP Candidate.
However, if Democratic Candidate Abigail Spanberger becomes the general election candidate, she may end up being a tougher candidate for Sears to face simply because she has more crossover appeal than Terry McAuliffe had back in 2021. After all, Spanberger unseated David Brat in former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's own House district.
MN state Senator Kari Dzeidzic passed away of cancer, putting the state senate tied at 33-33 until a special election is completed. Safe seat in Mpls so the real battle will be between establishment vs Democratic socialist in the endorsement/primary.
Carter wasn’t just a great man post-presidency in his humanitarian efforts. He was also good at diplomatic relations and even had won the respect of South Korean President Moon Jae-In back in 2022.
The gap between longest and second longest is huge, too.
Carter's post-presidency is 43 years, nearly 44 years. The next longest is Hoover's at 31 years. Carter is ahead by 12 years.
If Clinton makes it to 90, his post-presidency will be 36 years. He and Obama are the only two currently alive with any real chance at beating Carter's record, and those chances are slim.
From what I understand, Clinton used to have a love for fast food but was forced to adapt to a more vegan-friendly diet due to potentially life threatening reasons.
As you point out, Clinton had a heart health related affair that some odd time ago. The fact that he had no choice but to adapt illustrates how alarming having the diet he had was.
Obama might have a chance at being the second centenarian President. He's healthy besides his past cigarette use and healthcare will probably advance a good bit in the next 30 years when he'd be pretty reliant on it to keep ticking. I think people underrate the extent to which 100+ year lifespans are likely to become relatively common amongst people who don't die in accidents and have reasonably healthy lifestyle habits.
Biden was in the Senate when Jimmy Carter was POTUS and early on his legislative career.
I don’t think Biden has talked enough of being in the Senate during Carter’s presidency. Would be interesting if he were interviewed about accomplishments he made in the late 70’s while Carter was POTUS.
? Biden was in the Senate when Carter was running! And was the first in Washington DC to endorse the little known former governor. And he talks a lot about it.
Hopefully a year where we gain/holds trifectas in NJ and VA and recruit candidates up and down the ballot that can put the worst of the MAGA nightmare behind us for good in 2026.
lol no one really knows what a conflict of interest is based on how it gets discussed in the news. It's really hard to come up with a scenario where there's a conflict of interest as governor that wouldn't exist as LG. Both are involved in basically every piece of legislation that comes out of the legislature and are expected to be involved in the administration of emergency services. Maybe if he has a defense contracting company that did business with the VA NG and the LG has no responsibilities related to it?
Schumer announces that he's backing the leader of the Wisconsin Democratic Party to chair the DNC, seeking to tip the scales for Ben Wikler in a crowded race ahead of the Feb. 1 election.
I hope WIkler does a good job but I think we might be overestimating the power of the DNC chair. People have been elevating the importance of that post for a while. And I don't much trust Schumer's judgement. But still, I hope Wikler takes the ball and runs with it.
Not trying to be a smartass but is Wikler popular just because he goes on Pod Save America? Wisconsin Dems have done well, but not particularly spectacularly among the swing states. Michigan, Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona all have more impressive records in the Trump era and Pennsylvania is basically the same (a lost senate seat but holding the Governorship and the other Senate seat). I appreciate what he's done for the state party and as a result for the national dem party, but we lost there in 2024 for President and 2022 for the Senate so his record doesn't stand out to me.
He's popular because he gets results. Dems have won almost every statewide race in Wisconsin since he took over. The two exceptions were the 2022 Senate race where they came within 1 point of knocking off a GOP incumbent in a bad midterm with a candidate who was widely viewed as too liberal, and the 2024 presidential election where Wisconsin had the smallest red shift of any of the swing states.
Yeah my point is that this basically tracks every other swing state Democratic Party, except that in Michigan and Arizona we've not lost a single important race. In Pennsylvania and Nevada we've lost one, and in Georgia we've lost two (the governorship twice). His record is good but unremarkable, he's just the only party chair who does the media circuit.
I think you should put in perspective that Wikler leading the WI Democratic Party is a much different affair than in DNC. The scope is just much different nationwide. It’s a matter of strategy, not just fundraising.
Also, Howard Dean had run the DNC while having been formerly a Governor and lost the 2004 Democratic Preaidential Primary race. He got results even while Vermont at the time, like today, was a blue state at the time and didn’t have much in the way of challenges for the Democratic Party back in 2005.
"Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced his bid to be the state’s next governor on Thursday morning, becoming the first Democrat to enter what will likely be a crowded 2026 primary field.
“As your Attorney General, I’ve spent the last six years taking on big fights for the people of Colorado, standing up against irresponsible companies that harmed consumers, defending our freedoms, improving public safety, and protecting our land, air, and water,” Weiser said in a Thursday morning press release unveiling his campaign. “… This campaign will focus on engaging with you and having real conversations, to hear what’s on your mind, to learn how our state government can best serve you, and to get your ideas on how we can meet our challenges, together.'"
Oakland, CA Mayoral Race:
Since Mayor Sheng Thao was recalled weeks ago, one of the highest profile potential candidate to run in the special election to replace her is Loren Taylor. He was previously the preferred choice by former Mayor Libby Schaaf although Thao barely defeated him in the 2022 Mayoral Race in the ranked choice process.
Barbara Lee has been pushed to run although I honestly don’t see her running. Reason being is that her mentor, the late Ron Dellums, ran in the mayoral race in 2006 but was a disaster as mayor. I don’t think it would help Lee to potentially risk her legacy like this even though her politics and background fit Oakland and its character.
I’d prefer this race have Taylor and other fresh faces to run so we have a real choice.
It's a rather cursed mayoral position.
Libby Schaaf (who supported the Thao recall) at least was re-elected and is now running for CA Treasurer. Pending that, the last Oakland mayor who really moved up from it was Jerry Brown, and he of course had a long previous career as a statewide official with national significance.
Jerry Brown also oversaw the rescue of the state budget from perennial crises.
There's been talk on here over other candidates besides Schaaf to chose from in the CA Treasurer race. Schaaf comes in with having extremely low approval ratings exiting office as Mayor of Oakland. Her having supported the recall of Thao isn't exactly going to change the sentiment Oakland residents have had towards her.
I suspect she's taking lower political risk by going for a less high profile race as opposed to if she's running for Governor. It's a smart move but that doesn't mean I'd be inclined to voting for Schaaf for CA Treasurer.
Oakland as a city has institutional problems and needs to be reformed. That's the best way it as a city can move forward.
Of course, it also comes with an ideal mayoral candidate.
Would have love Lee as Senator, but in the mayoral race I want her advocacy and considered endorsement, not her candidacy.
I've lived in Berkeley most of my life and Lee has been an outstanding Representative in Congress.
However, she fits the profile of a legislator instead of being an executive in office. That said, if she endorses a mayoral candidate in the race, it can certainly add weight.
When Lee endorsed fellow Mills College alumna matter Lateefah Simon in the CA-12 race early on, Simon had already sealed the deal for winning CA-12. After all, Lee won re-election to CA-12 in 2022 with at least 90% points.
Florida Dem state rep Hillary Cassell switched parties, the second such dem since the election. Are these legit conversions or just stand-for-nothing politicians looking to get some bills passed in the shithole that is Destanisland and probably eventually cash in. She won by 7 in 2022 so there is a possibility of getting this one back.
Truly seems like a one-party state now.
It's truly amazing how many "Democratic" state legislators are actually conservatives who only run as Democrats due to the lean of their district, and who will switch parties at the drop of a hat if their district starts to vote Republican.
I guess Cassel's private reaction to Tricia Cotham's infamous party switch in North Carolina must have been "What a great idea!".
I think it had to do with both the lean of her district and the foreign policy issue that we aren't supposed to talk about.
Charlie Baker could challenge Markey for Senate.
https://x.com/OpenSourceZone/status/1872709129976045892?t=NaMhygsH5EIWqz99Zmtdvg&s=19
But his colleagues say it's untrue.
https://www.on3.com/news/ncaa-senior-vp-addresses-rumor-president-charlie-baker-considering-senate-run-massachusetts/
Baker can talk to Larry Hogan for insight on how that would probably work out, especially in a midterm when his party will feel the brunt of negative voter feelings.
Massachusetts and Vermont are the only states more Democratic than Maryland, but Baker did win by significantly more than Hogan in 2018.
Markey is pretty old and might not be able to put up as vigorous a campaign as Alsobrooks, but I doubt it matters in a Trump midterm. I’d prefer he step down for a younger Democrat at this point though.
If Baker really wanted to be a Senator, then he'd probably have done like Hogan (who wasn't particularly enthusiastic about the prospect) and run this year against Elizabeth Warren.
Warren seems to be more of a lightning rod, maybe in part due to her greater national prominence and presidential campaign, and often underperforms the party line, though she would likely have won even against Baker.
Hmm. His current gig is very cushy so I’m skeptical he would
Yea head of the NCAA, arguably more prestigious and relevant than a single U.S. senator
Are there any other competitive races to follow other than the supreme court seat coming up in Wisconsin?
There are going to be special elections (likely in the spring) to replace the House Republicans who vacated their seats to join the Trump administration. We’re not likely to win any of them, but I’ll be curious to see how much we outperform the baseline in those districts.
Also, NJ and VA will have gubernatorial elections in the fall of next year.
Yes, with Glenn Youngkin being termed out of office, the VA-GOV race is bound to be competitive for sure. So far from what seems to be going in the race. Lt. Governor Winsome Sears seems to be the leading GOP Candidate.
However, if Democratic Candidate Abigail Spanberger becomes the general election candidate, she may end up being a tougher candidate for Sears to face simply because she has more crossover appeal than Terry McAuliffe had back in 2021. After all, Spanberger unseated David Brat in former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's own House district.
3 dem justices on the PA supreme court are up for retention election in November 2025. The court is currently 4D-3R.
I believe the PA Supreme Court is 5-2 Dem.
MN state Senator Kari Dzeidzic passed away of cancer, putting the state senate tied at 33-33 until a special election is completed. Safe seat in Mpls so the real battle will be between establishment vs Democratic socialist in the endorsement/primary.
39th President Jimmy Carter passed away at 100. Carter holds the record of longest-lived US President in history. His wife Rosalynn died last year.
https://www.newsnationnow.com/politics/jimmy-carter-dies-100/
Longest post-Presidency, too, at nearly 44 years
RIP
Carter wasn’t just a great man post-presidency in his humanitarian efforts. He was also good at diplomatic relations and even had won the respect of South Korean President Moon Jae-In back in 2022.
https://www.nknews.org/2024/12/how-jimmy-carter-helped-prevent-a-devastating-war-with-north-korea/
The gap between longest and second longest is huge, too.
Carter's post-presidency is 43 years, nearly 44 years. The next longest is Hoover's at 31 years. Carter is ahead by 12 years.
If Clinton makes it to 90, his post-presidency will be 36 years. He and Obama are the only two currently alive with any real chance at beating Carter's record, and those chances are slim.
Clinton’s health has never seemed great - im honestly surprised Bubba is still with us
As for Obama, yeah. He’d need to make 98 and I think he’d be hard pressed to do it. Beating Hoover’s figure tho
From what I understand, Clinton used to have a love for fast food but was forced to adapt to a more vegan-friendly diet due to potentially life threatening reasons.
He was well-known enough for the fast food thing back in the day that SNL did a classic sketch about it.
And yeah, IIRC there was something heart related with him at one point like 20 years ago or so.
Yeah, I remember that sketch back in the 90's!
As you point out, Clinton had a heart health related affair that some odd time ago. The fact that he had no choice but to adapt illustrates how alarming having the diet he had was.
Obama might have a chance at being the second centenarian President. He's healthy besides his past cigarette use and healthcare will probably advance a good bit in the next 30 years when he'd be pretty reliant on it to keep ticking. I think people underrate the extent to which 100+ year lifespans are likely to become relatively common amongst people who don't die in accidents and have reasonably healthy lifestyle habits.
Unlike the two of them, I don't believe Carter has ever been a smoker, cigarettes or cigars
Biden was in the Senate when Jimmy Carter was POTUS and early on his legislative career.
I don’t think Biden has talked enough of being in the Senate during Carter’s presidency. Would be interesting if he were interviewed about accomplishments he made in the late 70’s while Carter was POTUS.
? Biden was in the Senate when Carter was running! And was the first in Washington DC to endorse the little known former governor. And he talks a lot about it.
given how Biden's Presidency ended and who his vapid celebrity successor is, pretty easy to say history rhymes here.
Happy New Year. Hello 2025.
Hopefully a year where we gain/holds trifectas in NJ and VA and recruit candidates up and down the ballot that can put the worst of the MAGA nightmare behind us for good in 2026.
Former Republican Congressman Denver Riggleman considering statewide run in Virginia as an Independent.
Says he is looking at Lt.Gov because for some reason Gov would be a conflict of interest? Idk
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5062330-denver-riggleman-exploratory-committee/
lol no one really knows what a conflict of interest is based on how it gets discussed in the news. It's really hard to come up with a scenario where there's a conflict of interest as governor that wouldn't exist as LG. Both are involved in basically every piece of legislation that comes out of the legislature and are expected to be involved in the administration of emergency services. Maybe if he has a defense contracting company that did business with the VA NG and the LG has no responsibilities related to it?
Just got a fundraising email from CO AG Phil Weiser saying he is running for Governor of Colorado.
Schumer announces that he's backing the leader of the Wisconsin Democratic Party to chair the DNC, seeking to tip the scales for Ben Wikler in a crowded race ahead of the Feb. 1 election.
Schumer said Wikler "knows how to win."
I hope WIkler does a good job but I think we might be overestimating the power of the DNC chair. People have been elevating the importance of that post for a while. And I don't much trust Schumer's judgement. But still, I hope Wikler takes the ball and runs with it.
Not trying to be a smartass but is Wikler popular just because he goes on Pod Save America? Wisconsin Dems have done well, but not particularly spectacularly among the swing states. Michigan, Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona all have more impressive records in the Trump era and Pennsylvania is basically the same (a lost senate seat but holding the Governorship and the other Senate seat). I appreciate what he's done for the state party and as a result for the national dem party, but we lost there in 2024 for President and 2022 for the Senate so his record doesn't stand out to me.
He's popular because he gets results. Dems have won almost every statewide race in Wisconsin since he took over. The two exceptions were the 2022 Senate race where they came within 1 point of knocking off a GOP incumbent in a bad midterm with a candidate who was widely viewed as too liberal, and the 2024 presidential election where Wisconsin had the smallest red shift of any of the swing states.
Yeah my point is that this basically tracks every other swing state Democratic Party, except that in Michigan and Arizona we've not lost a single important race. In Pennsylvania and Nevada we've lost one, and in Georgia we've lost two (the governorship twice). His record is good but unremarkable, he's just the only party chair who does the media circuit.
I think you should put in perspective that Wikler leading the WI Democratic Party is a much different affair than in DNC. The scope is just much different nationwide. It’s a matter of strategy, not just fundraising.
Also, Howard Dean had run the DNC while having been formerly a Governor and lost the 2004 Democratic Preaidential Primary race. He got results even while Vermont at the time, like today, was a blue state at the time and didn’t have much in the way of challenges for the Democratic Party back in 2005.
Who in the field has a better record?
"Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced his bid to be the state’s next governor on Thursday morning, becoming the first Democrat to enter what will likely be a crowded 2026 primary field.
“As your Attorney General, I’ve spent the last six years taking on big fights for the people of Colorado, standing up against irresponsible companies that harmed consumers, defending our freedoms, improving public safety, and protecting our land, air, and water,” Weiser said in a Thursday morning press release unveiling his campaign. “… This campaign will focus on engaging with you and having real conversations, to hear what’s on your mind, to learn how our state government can best serve you, and to get your ideas on how we can meet our challenges, together.'"
https://www.denverpost.com/2025/01/02/phil-weiser-colorado-governor-race-2026-election-candidate/
This is going to be a very crowded primary
Anyone know of a breakdown of Texas leg districts by 2024 POTUS and Senate numbers?