Obama-linked operatives dominate Harris campaign
Political insiders and advisers in former President Obama’s orbit are increasingly joining Vice President Harris’ campaign as she prepares to face off against former President Trump in November. Harris has less than 100 days to inspire voters to rally behind her White House run after President Biden dropped out of the race in the wake of mounting concerns over his mental acuity and 81 years of age. The vice president officially clinched her party’s 2024 presidential nomination on Friday, earning more than a majority of votes from convention delegates, the DNC reported. After Biden’s departure from the race, Harris is in the midst of building out her campaign team, most notably adding a bevy of Obama orbit insiders and advisers to her election effort. Last week, Harris hired David Plouffe as a senior campaign adviser after he managed Obama’s presidential campaign in 2008 and served as a senior aide to Obama’s successful 2012 re-election effort. Harris also hired Stephanie Cutter as her campaign’s senior adviser for strategy messaging, after Cutter’s work as deputy campaign manager for Obama’s 2012 election. BARACK, MICHELLE OBAMA ENDORSE KAMALA HARRIS FOR PRESIDENT AFTER DAYS OF SILENCE Harris also brought on Mitch Stewart as a senior adviser for battleground states after he worked for both of Obama’s campaigns as a grassroots strategist, the Washington Post reported. David Binder, who has long worked with Harris, is also expanding his role in the campaign to oversee its team of pollsters. Binder previously worked on Obama’s public opinion research team. OBAMA ALLIES, ADVISERS HELPED LEAD THE CHARGE AMONG DEMS LOOKING TO SINK BIDEN AHEAD OF OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT Harris also brought on veteran Democratic operative Jennifer Palmieri as senior adviser to Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff. Palmieri served as White House director of communications under the Obama administration and as director of communications for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s failed 2016 White House bid. Harris also previously tapped Obama’s former attorney general, Eric Holder, to lead the vetting process of her potential running mates, while Jennifer O’Malley Dillon, who worked as Obama’s 2012 deputy campaign manager and Biden’s 2024 re-election campaign chair, was announced as Harris’ campaign manager. OBAMA’S INNER CIRCLE SIGNALS 44TH PRESIDENT FIRMLY BEHIND HARRIS DESPITE NOT SAYING SO PUBLICLY The 44th president had remained coy for days last month before offering his endorsement of Harris’ presidential run. Since leaving the Oval Office, Obama has typically held his endorsement card close to his chest. He endorsed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in June 2016, while his endorsement of Biden in 2020 was only made days ahead of the Democratic National Convention. Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama officially endorsed Harris last week in a video. “I can’t have this phone call without saying to my girl Kamala: I am proud of you. This is going to be historic,” Michelle Obama said in the video while speaking to Harris. “We called to say Michelle and I couldn’t be prouder to endorse you and do everything we can to get you through this election and into the Oval Office,” former President Obama added. HARRIS EDGES CLOSER TO TRUMP IN NEW POLL CONDUCTED AFTER BIDEN’S WITHDRAWAL Harris, who also ran for president in the 2020 cycle before dropping out and running alongside Biden, had long had a friendship with Obama before entering federal politics. Harris was among the first elected Democrats in the nation to endorse Obama’s first run for president in the 2008 election, snubbing Hillary Clinton in favor of the then-Illinois senator. Harris was in attendance when Obama announced his candidacy for president in 2007, after first meeting him in 2004 when he was an Illinois state senator running for the U.S. Senate, the Washington Examiner previously reported. “Barack Obama will be a president who finally ends the era of fear that has been used to divide and demoralize our country,” Harris said during California’s Democratic convention in 2008. As Harris built her political career from San Francisco district attorney to California attorney general and then senator, Harris was even dubbed “the female Obama” by some political analysts. EX-OBAMA ADVISER SAYS BIDEN CAN’T BEAT ‘FATHER TIME’ AND IS ‘NOT WINNING THIS RACE’ Harris became the Democrat nominee for president upon Biden’s withdrawal from the race after his disastrous June debate performance against Trump, which included the president losing his train of thought, stumbling over his words and appearing more subdued than during other public events in recent years. The debate performance opened the floodgates to traditional Democrat allies and legacy media outlets joining conservatives in their concerns over Biden’s mental acuity and age. After the White House and Biden campaign repeatedly denied the president would drop out of the race, Biden announced in a tweet on a Sunday afternoon last month that he was leaving the race and would carry out his final months in the White House. Ahead of Biden dropping out of the race, Obama allies notably helped lead the charge in calling for the president to get out of the race in favor of a candidate they believed was more suitable to take on Trump. OBAMA AGAIN STEPPING INTO ROLE AS JOE’S CLOSER AHEAD OF TRUMP V BIDEN REMATCH Obama’s former chief campaign strategist, David Axelrod, said last month that Biden is “not winning this race.” Actor George Clooney called on Biden to drop out of the race in a bombshell op-ed that was published just weeks after the Hollywood star co-hosted Biden, alongside Obama, at a ritzy campaign event in Los Angeles. Clooney has long had a personal friendship with the Obamas, including vacationing with the first couple in previous years. Another ally in Obama’s orbit, Jon Favreau, who served as former director of speech writing for Obama, also called on Biden to drop out of the race last month, saying he attended the fundraiser in L.A. with Clooney and Obama and witnessed firsthand Biden’s state of mental acuity. Favreau, alongside former Obama advisers Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor – known collectively as the
‘Fight for our future’: Kamala Harris and Tim Walz hold first rally
Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s candidate for November’s United States presidential election, has held her first rally with running mate Tim Walz, describing their campaign as a “fight for our future”. The two took the stage in Pennsylvania to Beyonce’s Freedom just hours after Harris named Walz, the governor of Minnesota, as her vice presidential pick. Democrats are hoping Walz’s down-to-earth background will win over voters in crucial swing states in the Midwestern region, including Wisconsin and Michigan. Introducing the Army National Guard veteran and school-teacher-turned-politician, Harris said Walz was “a leader who will help unite our nation and move us forward, a fighter for the middle class, a patriot who believes, as I do, in the extraordinary promise of America.” A former attorney general of California, 59-year-old Harris has sought to contrast her past as a prosecutor with Republican rival Donald Trump’s criminal record. She told the crowd of about 10,000 supporters: “This campaign – our campaign – is not just a fight against Donald Trump. Our campaign – this campaign – is a fight for the future.” Walz, 60, was combative as he went on the attack against 78-year-old Trump. “He mocks our laws, he sows chaos and division, and that’s to say nothing of his record as president,” Walz said of Trump who was president for four years until 2020. “He froze in the face of the COVID crisis, he drove our economy into the ground, and make no mistake, violent crime was up under Donald Trump,” Walz said. “That’s not even counting the crimes he committed,” he added to roars of laughter and boisterous applause. Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz acknowledge the crowd as they arrive in Philadelphia [Joe Lamberti/AP Photo] He targeted Republicans for pursuing restrictions on women’s reproductive rights, an issue that has plagued the party since the US Supreme Court in 2022 ended women’s constitutional right to abortion. “Even if we wouldn’t make the same choice for ourselves, there’s a golden rule: mind your own damn business!” Walz said, drawing a huge ovation. The first joint appearance by Harris and Walz offered a glimpse of how they might appeal to voters – one a trailblazing Black and South Asian former senator from California, the other a white ex-congressman from the blue-collar US heartland. The Pennsylvania event was the first stop on a multi-day campaign tour through key states crucial to election success: Wisconsin, Michigan, Arizona and Nevada. Trump and his running mate Senator JD Vance were quick to tag the new competition as too liberal. “This is the most Radical Left duo in American history,” Trump wrote on his social media platform. Analysts said the new Democratic ticket were on the same page on policy and had the experience to govern. “What you saw today was a ticket that represents both the coastal liberals and the Midwest working class folks who are the base of the Democratic Party and what you also heard was a very effective takedown of the Republican party ticket, which includes a convicted felon and a guy who is the reason why Tim Walz refers to the Republican ticket as ‘weird’,” Luis Navarro, a fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute in Philadelphia, told Al Jazeera. ‘Sense of joy’ While most voters will make their choice on November 5 based on the presidential candidate, the choice of a running mate can help or hurt the ticket as a result of their background, home state popularity and ability to sway important constituencies or independent voters. A relatively low-profile politician, Walz spent 12 years in the US House of Representatives representing a largely rural district in southern Minnesota. He ran for governor of the state for the first time in 2018 and was returned for a second term four years later. Despite the state not being a traditional Democratic stronghold, Walz won both races with ease. During his time in office, he has won approval for policies including tuition fee programmes for low-income students, free school meals, goals for tackling climate change, tax cuts for the middle class and expanded paid leave for workers. Walz, who got the nod ahead of more prominent names including Pennsylvania’s popular Governor Josh Shapiro, on Tuesday spoke of his upbringing in the small town of Butte, Nebraska where he worked on the family farm and where community was a “way of life” with neighbours striving together “for the common good.” Supporters cheer Kamala Harris and Tim Walz as they speak at Tuesday’s campaign rally [Matt Rourke/AP Photo] He also lauded Harris’s work and career. “She took on the predators and the fraudsters, she took down transnational gangs, stood up against powerful corporate interests,” Walz said. “And she never hesitated to reach across the aisle if it meant improving people’s lives… And she does it all with a sense of joy.” The vice president’s first joint appearance with her new running mate comes before the Democratic Party convention in Chicago, which starts on August 19. The noisy rally was a striking reminder of how different the race was before 81-year-old President Joe Biden bowed to mounting concerns over his age and withdrew from the race giving his endorsement to Harris. Polls show she has erased the lead Trump had built against Biden. The Harris campaign said it had raised more than $20m after Walz was announced as Harris’s running mate. Biden described the Harris and Walz ticket as “a powerful voice for working people and America’s great middle class”. Adblock test (Why?)
US Defense Secretary Austin defends decision to revoke 9/11 plea deals
The Pentagon chief was caught off guard by last week’s decision by prosecutors to offer deals to the men. United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has defended his decision to revoke controversial plea deals agreed between prosecutors and three men accused of plotting the September 11, 2001 attacks. Speaking publicly for the first time about his decision on Tuesday, Austin said it “wasn’t a decision that I took lightly” and he did so to honour the scale of the loss that occurred that day. “I have long believed that the families of the victims, our service members, and the American public deserve the opportunity to see military commissions, commission trials carried out,” he said at an event with visiting Australian officials in Annapolis, Maryland. The Pentagon announced on July 31 that plea agreements had been reached with three of five alleged plotters held at the Guantanamo Bay detention centre, where they stand accused of orchestrating the deadliest attack on US soil in the country’s history. Nearly 3,000 people were killed that day as hijacked passenger planes struck targets in New York City and Washington, DC. A fourth crashed into a field as passengers tackled the hijackers. The deals involved alleged mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammad as well as accomplices Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hawsawi. A fourth defendant did not agree to the terms, while a fifth man was ruled mentally unfit to continue facing trial last year. In a statement, it described the deals as “pretrial agreements”, without offering further details. US media reports said the men would plead guilty in exchange for receiving a life sentence rather than the death penalty. The defendants are due to face trial in a military court at the maximum-security facility in Cuba, but their cases have been held up for years amid legal wrangling. The plea bargains had been welcomed by some as the only feasible way to resolve the long-stalled 9/11 cases, including J Wells Dixon, a lawyer at the Center for Constitutional Rights. Dixon, who has represented defendants at Guantanamo and other detainees who have been cleared of wrongdoing, accused Austin of “bowing to political pressure and pushing some victim family members over an emotional cliff” with the reversal. The plea deals sparked outrage among some victims’ family members and Republican lawmakers, who accused the administration of President Joe Biden of treating the defendants too lightly. Austin himself was also caught off guard by the decision, Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters on Monday. “This is not something that the secretary [Lloyd Austin] was consulted on,” she said. “We were not aware that the prosecution or defence would enter the terms of the plea agreement.” On Friday, a tersely-worded letter from the defence secretary said the plea deals had been withdrawn. Austin added that Susan Escallier, the official in charge of the military commission which had signed off on them, had also been relieved of her authority to enter into pre-trial agreements and he would now assume responsibility in the case. “Effective immediately, in the exercise of my authority, I hereby withdraw from the three pretrial agreements that you signed on July 31, 2024,” the letter said. US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan confirmed that the Biden administration did not play a role in the plea bargains, saying the White House knew the “same day” they were announced. “We had no role in that process. The president had no role. The vice president had no role. I had no role. The White House had no role,” Sullivan told journalists on Thursday, without explaining why the deals were agreed and announced without consultation. Adblock test (Why?)
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 894
As the war enters its 894th day, these are the main developments. Here is the situation on Wednesday, August 7, 2024. Fighting At least one person was killed and 12 others, including an eight-month-old baby, injured on Tuesday when a Russian missile struck a residential area of northeastern Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second biggest city. Governor Oleh Syniehubov said a medical clinic was among many buildings that were damaged in the attack, which he said involved an Iskander ballistic missile. Alexei Smirnov, the acting governor of Russia’s southwestern Kursk region, bordering Ukraine, said a driver and paramedic were killed and a doctor injured when a Ukrainian drone hit an ambulance near the town of Sudzha. Russia said it sent reserve troops to the Kursk region, claiming some 300 pro-Kyiv fighters had stormed across the border supported by 11 tanks and more than 20 armoured vehicles. Smirnov said later that the situation was “tense” but “under the control” of Russian forces. Kyiv did not comment on the alleged incursion. Sergei Shoigu, the secretary of Russia’s Security Council, said Russia had captured 420sq km (162sq miles) of Ukrainian territory since June 14, as the Ministry of Defence said its forces had taken control of Tymofiivka, a village in eastern Donetsk region. Politics and diplomacy Niger’s military rulers cut diplomatic ties with Ukraine in solidarity with Mali, which severed relations with Kyiv over remarks from an official that it said showed Ukraine’s support for groups involved in an attack that killed dozens of mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner group as well as Malian soldiers in July. Maria Andreyeva, one of the leaders of the Put Domoy (Way Home) group that campaigns for drafted men to be brought home from Ukraine, told the AFP news agency that she had quit her campaigning amid pressure from the Kremlin. Andreyeva said she lost her job after Moscow designated her a “foreign agent”. A court In Prague jailed Czech volunteer Filip Siman for seven years after he was found guilty of looting from civilians and dead soldiers while serving with the Ukrainian army. Siman was posted to the ravaged Ukrainian cities of Irpin and Bucha where he stole from civilians and dead soldiers, Czech media said. Weapons Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine had used more drones in combat than Russia last month and that the weapons were “already affecting the war in strategic terms”. He did not give numbers. Zelenskyy also said Ukraine had put additional funding towards its domestic missile programme as it tries to narrow a gap in capabilities with Russia, which has a variety of long-range weapons. “More domestically produced missiles to come”, Zelenskyy wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Adblock test (Why?)
Good news for Bengaluru as govt allows club, restaurants to…
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah highlighted in his budget speech the government’s support for business establishments. The recent government orders will exclusively impact businesses within BBMP limits, signaling a transformative shift in Bengaluru’s nightlife.
Kristen McDonald Privet wins Dem primary for Rep Dan Kildee’s open blue Michigan seat
State senator Kristen McDonald Privet was declared the winner of the Democratic primary for Michigan’s 8th Congressional District. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich., announced in 2023 that he would not be seeking re-election, leaving the seat he’s represented since 2012 up for grabs this cycle. The primary race saw three candidates competing for the nomination: Kristen McDonald Privet, Matt Collier and Pamela Pugh. . KEY PRIMARIES IN 4 STATES ON TUESDAY TO SET TABLE TO NOVEMBER SENATE, HOUSE SHOWDOWNS Collier previously served as the mayor of Flint, Michigan in the late 1980s. Pugh currently works as president of the Michigan State Board of Education. McDonald Privet currently serves as the first female state senator to represent the Great Lakes Bay Region. The state senator also served as executive director of Michigan Head Start, chief of staff for Michigan’s Department of Education, and vice president of the Skillman Foundation.
Paul Junge wins GOP primary for Michigan’s 8th Congressional District
Paul Junge won the GOP primary for Michigan’s 8th Congressional District, securing the Republican nomination. He will now move on in hopes of replacing retiring Democrat Rep. Dan Kildee. Junge defeated Mary Draves and Anthony Hudson with 73%, when the race was called by the Associated Press. KEY PRIMARIES IN 4 STATES ON TUESDAY TO SET TABLE FOR NOVEMBER SENATE, HOUSE SHOWDOWNS Junge, who twice ran unsuccessfully for the 8th Congressional District seat, served in the Department of Homeland Security during the administration of former President Donald Trump and was an investigative counsel for Senate Judiciary Committee chair Sen. Chuck Grassley. He ran the 2024 campaign on fighting against inflation and the border crisis, citing the opioid epidemic for “devastating forgotten communities.” “Stopping the rising cost of goods and improving the economy for working families is a top priority to my campaign,” Junge told the Midland Daily News. “Equally as important, I will fight to stop the flow of illegal immigrants and poisonous synthetic opioids across our southern border, which are devastating forgotten communities across our state and across our country.” WHAT MIKE ROGERS TOLD FOX NEWS DIGITAL ABOUT HIS SENATE SHOWDOWN IN MICHIGAN Draves, who runs an auto repair business with her husband, argued for energy independence and border safety during the campaign. “The United States was energy independent when President Trump was in office, meaning we were a net exporter of energy. If we have enough energy here, we don’t have to rely on foreign sources for energy and then we can innovate and grow our businesses here,” Draves told the Midland Daily News. “The number one thing we need to do is stop the influx of illegal immigrants coming into this country and the flow of fentanyl over our border. A strong America is a safe America and a prosperous America.” Hudson, a native of Texas and an Army veteran, was making his second bid to represent the 8th Congressional District and ran a campaign centered around border security and jobs. “I am just the average, everyday American citizen that is upset with where our country is headed and wants to run for office so that we can make the positive change that is necessary,” Hudson told the Midland Daily News. “I want to help in getting people to move back to the state of Michigan by bringing jobs to Michigan and be on the front lines of fighting all these Chinese companies that (Gov.) Gretchen Whitmer wants to bring into our state.” Jung will now face the winner of the Democratic primary, in which three candidates will seek to replace Kildee. Kildee has represented Michigan’s 8th Congressional District since 2012, but announced he would not run for re-election last November.
Incumbent Andrew Bailey defeats Will Scharf in Republican primary for Missouri attorney general
Incumbent Andrew Bailey won the Republican primary for Missouri attorney general, setting the stage for the general election match-up against Democrat Elad Gross. Republican Trump attorney Will Scharf conceded to incumbent Republican Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey in the state’s Aug. 6 primary election. Bailey led the race by a whopping 63% to 37% early Wednesday morning, according to the state of Missouri elections website. Scharf received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University, his law degree from Harvard University, clerked for two federal appeals court judges and has worked at CRC Advisors, a conservative public relations firm. SUPREME COURT REJECTS MISSOURI EFFORT TO BLOCK SENTENCING, GAG ORDER AGAINST TRUMP IN NEW YORK CASE In addition to being one of Trump’s lawyers, Scharf has worked as an assistant U.S. Attorney in St. Louis, and worked on the campaign and later in the office of then-Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens. Bailey, meanwhile, has spent nearly his entire career in Missouri. EXCLUSIVE: MISSOURI AG TORCHES KANSAS CITY’S ‘RETALIATION’ AGAINST CHIEFS KICKER EXPRESSING CHRISTIAN BELIEFS The Army veteran received his undergraduate and law degrees at the University of Missouri, worked in the state attorney general’s office, and he was an assistant county prosecutor and a state government lawyer before joining the office of Gov. Mike Parson, who eventually appointed him as attorney general. Bailey, most recently, filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration for reportedly flying illegal immigrants to Missouri. Bailey, in June, also filed a lawsuit against the State of New York for what he called “their direct attack on our democratic process through unconstitutional lawfare against President Trump.” The Supreme Court ruled on that effort Monday, rejecting Bailey’s effort. Bailey had argued the First Amendment rights of voters in his state were being violated due to the gag order imposed on the former president in New York v. Trump. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Democrat Carl Marlinga wins right to take on John James in Michigan’s 10th District
Carl Marlinga edged out three other candidates in a competitive Democratic primary for Michigan’s 10th Congressional District and will battle incumbent Republican Rep. John James in November. Marlinga defeated Diane Young, Emily Busch and Tiffany Tilley according to a call from the Associated Press. Marlinga, a former judge, entered the race seeking a rematch with James and touted his long record as a prosecutor and judge throughout the campaign. KEY PRIMARIES IN 4 STATES ON TUESDAY TO SET TABLE FOR NOVEMBER SENATE, HOUSE SHOWDOWNS “After decades of doing the right thing for the right reasons, sometimes having some rocky headlines, but as long as you do the right thing for the right reason, you usually come out ahead,” Marlinga told Michigan Advance. “And most voters in the county will describe me that way.” Tilley, who has served as the co-vice president on the State Board of Education since 2018, ran on a platform of gun safety, recounting stories of losing family members to gun violence. “No other person in this race has that type of background, has that type of experience or even has that type of passion that I have, that I’ve brought forth,” Tilley told Michigan Advance. “I’ve been fighting for people for over 20 years. Most candidates in the race can’t say that.” WHAT MIKE ROGERS TOLD FOX NEWS DIGITAL ABOUT HIS SENATE SHOWDOWN IN MICHIGAN Young, who has experience in financial planning, ran on the need for Congress to reform tax and welfare policy while shoring up social security. “I’m deeply in tune with the issues that everyday people are facing,” Young told Michigan Advance. “From taking care of their children, to how they’re going to fund their retirement, to how critical Social Security and Medicare are to creating a safer and secure retirement for people.” Busch, who ran an unsuccessful campaign for the state House in 2022, also ran heavily on gun safety, noting her experience of picking up her son from school after he survived the deadly Oxford High School shooting in 2021 and also citing the shooting on the campus of Michigan State University last year. “When the Michigan State University shooting happened, it resonated across the entire state and region,” Busch told the Michigan Advance. “So that was the night that actually pushed me off the cliff to run for Congress.” [Winner] will now take on James, who ran unopposed in the district’s Republican primary, in November’s general election. Jones narrowly won the 2022 race, edging Marlinga 48.8% to 48.3%. According to the Cook Political Report, Michigan’s 10th Congressional District has a “lean” Republican classification.
Paul Hudson wins House GOP primary in Michigan’s ultimate swing district
Paul Hudson emerged with the victory in the Republican primary for Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District, one of the most competitive races in the country. Hudson was leading Michael Markey Jr. approximately 55% to 45% when the race was caklled by the Associated Press. Markey Jr., who touted his business experience throughout the campaign, painted himself as a “disrupter” who would work to “get things” done if elected to Congress. KEY PRIMARIES IN 4 STATES ON TUESDAY TO SET TABLE FOR NOVEMBER SENATE, HOUSE SHOWDOWNS “I’m like, ‘Why are we using, you know, what makes me a disrupter?’ [My team is] like, ‘Mike, you started your first business at 14 years old, you got into real estate before you were 15, you started a financial firm during the worst economic crisis hopefully we ever see in our lifetimes,’” he told ABC News 13 in an interview earlier this month. “They’re like, ‘That makes you a disrupter. You go against the grain, you get things done.’” Hudson, an attorney, ran on a platform of stability. He argued that the district’s voters are “uneasy” about the current political climate and promised “common sense for crazy times.” “When I’ve talked to voters, I get a sense that people are really uneasy about the state of the country right now, and that there’s a deep sense that the country is going in the wrong direction,” Hudson told ABC News 13. WHAT MIKE ROGERS TOLD FOX NEWS DIGITAL ABOUT HIS SENATE SHOWDOWN IN MICHIGAN Hudson will now face Democrat incumbent Rep. Hillary Scholten in November’s general election. Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District, which features all of Grand Rapids and much of the surrounding area, is seen as one of the biggest swing districts in the country after the state’s 2022 redistricting saw the boundaries of the district drawn more competitively. Scholten, who is serving her first term, was able to wrestle the district away from former Republican Rep. Peter Meijer in 2022. The district is classified as a “likely” win for Democrats in this year’s contest, according to the Cook Political report.