House Democrats‘ campaign arm selected five more seats to target in the 2024 election, focusing on swing seats or contests in key battleground states that could decide whether Democrats flip the majority this November.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced on Wednesday five additions to the committee’s “Red to Blue” program, which allocates fundraising, strategic guidance, and staff resources and training to candidates seeking to flip a GOP seat or ensure a Democratic victory in a blue stronghold.
The newest “Red to Blue” candidates are Ashley Ehasz, Janelle Stelson, Peter Barca, Shomari Figures, and Kristen McDonald Rivet. The first three are running to oust a Republican incumbent, while Figures seeks to win in Alabama’s newly drawn district, and McDonald Rivet seeks to replace an outgoing Democratic member.
Candidates who belong to the “Red to Blue” program have historically fared well in competitive general elections. However, most recently in Oregon, the DCCC supported Janelle Bynum by inducting her in the program, whose resources led to Bynum defeating progressive candidate Jamie McLeod-Skinner in the Democratic primary last week — marking a rare moment the House Democrats’ fundraising arm has weighed in on a party primary.
Ehasz, a U.S. Army combat veteran, is the Democratic candidate running in Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional District, a seat held by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) but won by President Joe Biden in 2020. It has been a battleground state for the last few elections, and Democrats have narrowed in on Fitzpatrick as a vulnerable Republican to defeat this year. The seat is ranked “likely Republican” by the CookPoliticalReport.
Also in Pennsylvania, Stelson, a broadcast journalist, is running to unseat Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), a hard-line Freedom Caucus member who has held office since 2013. The 10th Congressional District is ranked “lean Republican” by the CookPoliticalReport, which shifted from “likely” following the primary elections in April. Democrats have attacked Perry for his anti-abortion stance, pushing 2020 election fraud claims, and the larger GOP effort to keep former President Donald Trump in office. In 2024, he became one of many Republicans hit with a lawsuit to bar him from the 2024 ballot.
Barca, who has served as the Wisconsin State Assembly’s minority leader, is running to oust Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI). Though Wisconsin’s 1st District had historically been safely red, redistricting in 2022 made it more favorable for Democrats to win. Still, the seat is ranked “likely Republican” by the CookPoliticalReport.
Unlike other program inductees, Figures and McDonald Rivet are running to fill open seats. Figures won a runoff in April to be the Democratic nominee for Alabama’s 2nd District, a district that was long considered a GOP stronghold but was reshaped to become 49% black due to new congressional maps. She is facing Republican Caroleene Dobson in the general election this November, and the CookPoliticalReport rates the seat as “likely Democrat.”
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McDonald Rivet is seeking to replace outgoing Rep. Dan Kildee (D-MI), who has represented Michigan’s 8th Congressional District since 2013. Kildee announced in November he would not seek reelection. Michigan’s 2022 redistricting map put Kildee’s district, once a safe blue stronghold, into play — giving the GOP an opportunity to flip the seat in another key battleground state. Biden won the newly configured 8th District by just 2 percentage points. The CookPoliticalReport rates the seat as a “toss-up.”
“The five candidates added to the ‘Red to Blue’ program today will authentically represent their districts — a stark contrast to their extreme, far-right opponents,” DCCC Chairwoman Suzan DelBene said in a statement. “They come from diverse backgrounds and are all trusted community leaders focused on lowering costs, strengthening the middle class, building safe communities, and defending reproductive rights. I am excited to work with each of them as Democrats retake the majority this November.”