– The Washington Times
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s latest list of “Red to Blue” candidates that it is backing is essentially a party endorsement for primaries and favors establishment candidates, drawing howls from the party’s liberal wing.
“Democratic primary voters should pick the nominee, not DC insiders,” Rep. Ro Khanna, a liberal California Democrat, wrote on X.
The Working Families Party, a far-left group that works within the Democratic ecosystem, criticized the Democratic establishment for “again putting its thumb on the scale, not to support the stronger candidate, but the candidate who will bend to party leadership and its corporate donors.”
The DCCC is doing what is necessary to recapture the House in November by putting the best candidates in place to accomplish that goal, said DCCC spokesman Viet Shelton.
“It’s imperative that Democrats must take back the House to hold Trump accountable and deliver on what truly matters to voters — lower costs and affordable healthcare,” Mr. Shelton told The Washington Times.
He added that the candidates on the Red-to-Blue list “span the ideological spectrum, are authentic voices in their districts, and are best positioned to win in November.”
Still, the Congressional Progressive Caucus said it disagrees with the DCCC’s decision to “attempt to tip the scales.”
California’s 22nd Congressional District, a swing district represented by Republican Rep. David Valdao, has long been targeted by the DCCC, and the party threw its support behind moderate state Assemblywoman Jasmeet Bains over more liberal Randy Villegas, who received the backing of far-left figures including Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington and Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida.
Mr. Villegas also received the backing of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the United Auto Workers Union.
Ms. Baines picked up the support of SEIU California, IBEW Local 428, National Union of Healthcare Workers, the Teamsters, Laborers’ International Union of North America, United Brotherhood of Carpenters, AFSCME and the California Federation of Teachers.
Despite Ms. Baines receiving support from some of the state’s most liberal organizations, she is still being outraised by Mr. Villegas, who called her support from the DCCC “undemocratic.”
The Democratic establishment is also being criticized for supporting Bob Brooks, a Pennsylvania firefighter running in the state’s 7th Congressional District. He is facing three opponents, including Carol Obando Destine, whom the Congressional Hispanic Caucus is backing.
In Arizona’s 1st Congressional District, the DCCC endorsed former broadcast journalist Marlene Galán-Woods over former state representative Amish Shah, who defeated Ms. Galán-Woods in the 2024 primary for the seat and went on to lose the general by 4 points.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
