Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot will lose reelection bid
By Eric Bradner  Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot lost her bid for a second term Tuesday, failing to make a top-two runoff in the latest demonstration of growing concerns about crime in one of the nationâs largest cities. Paul Vallas, a long-time public schools chief who ran on a tough-on-crime message, and Brandon Johnson, a Cook County commissioner backed by progressives and the Chicago Teachers Union, will advance to the April runoff. Tuesdayâs municipal election marked the first time in more than 30 years that Chicago has ditched its mayor. Lightfoot could not overcome years of fights with the police and teachersâ
Jennifer McClellan will win special election and become Virginiaâs first Black congresswoman
By Chandelis Duster Virginia state Sen. Jennifer McClellan will win the special election for Virginiaâs 4th Congressional District and will become the first Black woman to represent the commonwealth in Congress, CNN projected Tuesday. McClellan will defeat Republican Leon Benjamin, a pastor and Navy veteran, to succeed the late Democratic Rep. Donald McEachin, who died in November. McClellan, who was introduced at her Tuesday night victory party by Virginia Rep. Bobby Scott and walked out to Alicia Keysâ âGirl on Fire,â hailed the pathbreaking figures, including McEachin, who paved the way for her historic ascent and promised to bring their spirit to Capitol
Here are some key takeaways from Biden’s State of the Union address
By Kevin Liptak When President Joe Biden took to the House Chamber on Tuesday for his annual State of the Union address, his message was one of unadulterated optimism â even in the face of open hostility. The spectacle of Biden smiling and offering a pointed riposte through multiple rounds of heckling from some House Republicans was, in many ways, an apt illustration of his presidency and a useful preview of his likely 2024 candidacy. A majority of Americans say he hasnât accomplished much, many Democrats arenât thrilled at the prospect of him running for reelection and he faces clear disdain from
Black voter turnout was down in 2022. Democratic operatives are panicking about what it could mean for 2024
By Edward-Isaac Dovere An informal group of Black elected officials has lit up over phone calls and texts since Election Day. Theyâre worried about Black turnout that continues to underperform and talking ideas about how to turn it around before the next presidential election. Black voters didnât go for Republicans in significant numbers, but in many places, they just didnât show up to vote at the rate they used to, underperforming when compared to other voter groups in this yearâs midterms. If former President Donald Trump and extremist candidates arenât on the ballot in two years driving suburban and independent voters to vote
A Divided Congress Raises Bigger Issues Than Potential Gridlock
By Matt Harris In the wake of the 2022 U.S. midterm elections, a general sense of the political landscape in the upcoming 118th Congress has taken shape. With Sen. Kyrsten Sinemaâs announcement that she is leaving the Democratic Party and Sen. Raphael Warnockâs victory in Georgiaâs runoff, Democrats will maintain control in the Senate, while Republicans will take control of the House. Divided government sparks fears of gridlock, a legislative standstill. At face value, this makes sense. Given the different policy priorities of the two major parties, you might expect to see each party passing legislation out of the chamber it controls that has little
What the Georgia Runoff Revealed
By Ronald Brownstein Democrats hold a key advantage in the five states that will decide the next presidential election. Senator raphael warnockâs win in yesterdayâs Georgia Senate runoff capped a commanding show of strength by Democrats in the states that decided the 2020 race for the White Houseâand will likely pick the winner again in 2024. With Warnockâs victory over Republican Herschel Walker, Democrats have defeated every GOP Senate and gubernatorial candidate endorsed by Donald Trump this year in the five states that flipped from supporting him in 2016 to backing Joe Biden in 2020: Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia, and Arizona.
Warnock Beats Herschel Walker To Win Tight Georgia Senate Runoff Election
By Bruce C.T. Wright Sen. Raphael Warnock is projected to win the Georgia senate runoff with a narrow election victory over Herschel Walker in a contest that was close until the very end. The runoff election victory was Warnockâs second in as many years and paves the way for him to serve a full six-year term in the U.S. Senate. It also solidifies the Democratsâ advantage in the Senate. The Associated Press called the race late Tuesday night, less than a month after neither candidate could garner 50% of the general electionâs votes, sparking the runoff. At the time the race was called, most estimates
House Democrats elect Rep. Hakeem Jeffries as leader, the first Black person to lead a congressional caucus
By Scott Wong and Ali Vitali  House Democrats elected their new leadership team Wednesday, ushering in a younger generation of leaders after Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer decided to step aside after Democrats narrowly lost the majority this month. Pelosi, 82, of California, the first female speaker of the House, will pass the torch to Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., 52, who ran unopposed for minority leader and will make history as the first Black lawmaker to lead a political partyâs caucus in either chamber. “Today, with immense pride, I stood in front of the House Democratic Caucus as a candidate for Democratic Leader,
Black voters in Louisiana âembarrassedâ by stateâs failure to pass anti-slavery amendment
By Curtis Bunn Black voters in Louisiana are confused. Many are embarrassed. Some are angry. All seem to be concerned about how their state is being perceived after a constitutional amendment to eliminate slavery and forced indentured servitude failed to pass in the November election. That may be, in part, because the lawmaker who authored the bill to allow the vote switched direction and worked to kill it. Four other states â Alabama, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont â passed similar legislation, effectively ending âslave laborâ in prisons. Louisiana, however, did not vote for the constitutional amendment, which had been introduced by Rep.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries announces bid to replace Nancy Pelosi as Democratic leader
By Scott Wong New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the fourth-ranking House Democrat, said Friday that he will run to replace House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as the party’s leader after Republicans took back control of the chamber in last weekâs midterm elections. His announcement in a letter to colleagues came a day after Pelosi said in a powerful floor speech that she is stepping down after a two-decade reign as the top leader of House Democrats. If Jeffries is successful, it would represent a historic passing of the torch: Pelosi made history as the first female speaker of the House, while Jeffries, the current Democratic Caucus chairman,