Good morning and thank you for stopping by the DDHQ Morning News Spotlight. There has been a lot of redistricting news in the last 24 hours that will continue to play out today, and Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson picks up her first Republican supporter in the Senate. Let’s dive in.
Morning Headlines
- Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine announced this morning that she will vote to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. This comes a day after Senator Collins and Senator Romney met with Judge Jackson. The Seate Judiciary Committee announced on Monday that they will vote to advance the nomination to the house floor on April 4.
- Senator Bill Cassidy confirmed that he is eyeing a run for Louisiana Governor. Cassidy was one of seven Republican senators to vote to impeach former President Trump in his second impeachment trial. After the vote, the Louisiana Republican Party voted to censure him. Cassidy won all but one parish in his 2020 reelection and looks to take on a popular Democratic governor in John Bel Edwards.
- Florida Governor Ron DeSantis vetoed the Congressional maps recently drawn by the Florida Legislature, which is controlled by his own party. A special session will be held in April to redraw them. Republicans may be able to net another seat from a redraw as redistricting begins to draw to a close.
- The Maryland Senate passed a new Congressional map yesterday. Republicans in the Maryland Senate still had strong criticism for the new map, while some concede it is better than the map struck down on Friday. Senate Democratic leaders hope to have the map on Republican Governor Larry Hogan’s desk today.
- The Ohio Supreme Court set the schedule yesterday for legal challenges to the Congressional map passed by the Ohio redistricting commission. The timeline extends well beyond the start of early voting for the May 3 primary election, all but ensuring that the maps will be used in the 2022 elections.
- House Majority PAC, a Democratic super PAC focused on winning House races, has announced it is significantly upping its ad spending this year. They are planning on spending $102 million on ad buys in over 50 media markets, widening what they see as the battlefield significantly compared to the last two Congressional elections.
- Ohio Democratic gubernatorial candidates faced off in a debate last night with current Governor Mike DeWine being a constant topic of discussion. Governor DeWine himself has opted not to participate in gubernatorial debates in the Republican primary. Politico recently explored other candidates who are dodging debates this primary season.
- Elections Daily explore the new map passed by the Maryland Senate, and what still stands in the way of these districts making it to the ballot.
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