The Downballot

Kansas rocked the political world on Tuesday night, rejecting an attempt to amend the state constitution to strip away the right to an abortion in a massive landslide. On this week's edition of The Downballot, we pick apart the vote with law professor Quinn Yeargain , an expert on state constitutions. Yeargain explains how the amendment came to be on the ballot, what might've caused the huge spike...

Whoa, mama! August has so, so many juicy primaries on tap, which is why we've brought Daily Kos Elections Editor Jeff Singer back to discuss all the best races for this week's edition of The Downballot. There's the GOP battle for Arizona's governorship, where Trump's pick has been absolutely slayed by her drag queen ex-friend; two pro-impeachment Republicans in Washington state trying to keep thei...

Our guest on this week's episode of The Downballot is former Missouri state Sen. Jeff Smith, who spent a year in federal prison stemming from a campaign finance violation and devoted himself to criminal justice reform upon his release. Smith tells us about the grave problems his experience behind bars showed him that are in desperate need of redress and why reformers have zero margin for error. He...

This week, The Downballot talks with Jason Bresler, who was political director of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee during the 2018 wave that saw the party retake the House. Bresler explains how exactly the DCCC helps candidates, from start to finish; the key moments of 2018 that convinced him the House would flip; and the advice he'd give to Democrats heading into a difficult electi...

On this week's episode of The Downballot, we're joined by Ruby Powell-Dennis, founder of the Elect Black Women PAC. Powell-Dennis tells us about her inspiration for creating the group, the work it does to help elect its endorsed candidates at all levels of the ballot, and the particular challenges faced by Black women running for office—including whether to even run in the first place. David Nir a...

How could we not discuss the Supreme Court's evisceration of abortion rights on this week's episode of The Downballot? Co-hosts David Nir and David Beard talk about why Democratic leaders must articulate a clear plan for the election outcomes they need—specifically, a Senate majority that will reform the filibuster—and what they intend to do if voters deliver, as well as the importance of waiting...

Redistricting has finally come to an end, so it's time for us to catch up on what all the slow-poke states did with their new congressional maps on this week's episode of The Downballot. We're talking with Daily Kos Elections contributing editor David Jarman, who walks us through the whipsaw changes in New York, which saw a Democratic gerrymander replaced with a court-drawn map; Ron DeSantis' extr...

No state regularly hosts as many hotly contested elections as Wisconsin, which is why we're talking to state Democratic Party chair Ben Wikler about all of this year's key races on this week's episode of The Downballot. He tells us about everything his organization does to ensure year-round investment in Democratic infrastructure; details the state of play in the battle to defeat Sen. Ron Johnson...

June is a jumbo primary month, so we've once again brought Daily Kos Elections editor Jeff Singer on this week's edition of The Downballot to preview all of the major races. There's the perennial loser (but one-time winner!) Danny Tarkanian's quest to oust a sitting GOP congressman in rural Nevada; Republican Rep. Mo Brooks' attempt to come back from the dead in the Alabama Senate runoff; two very...

This episode originally aired on February 10, 2022. We're celebrating our 20th anniversary for a week longer by re-airing the inaugural episode of The Downballot. In this episode, co-hosts David Nir Nir and David Beard chat with Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas about the history of both Daily Kos and Daily Kos Elections, and why we do the work that we do. Episode transcript .

Believe it or not, Daily Kos is turning 20! We're celebrating this major milestone with a Downballot retrospective, looking back at some of our favorite races over the years with longtime contributing editor James Lambert. We start with a classic 2005 special election in a dark red district in Ohio, featuring "Fighting" Dem Paul Hackett versus Republican "Mean Jean" Schmidt, that foretold the 2006...

Okay, wow, we have a lot of primaries to talk about on this week's episode of The Downballot, which is why we asked political strategist and fellow elections nerd Joe Sudbay to join us to recap it all. There's Madison Cawthorn losing in North Carolina, of course, as well as the GOP nominating QAnon ally Doug Mastriano for governor and the still-undecided Republican battle for Senate in Pennsylvani...

Are Republicans torching their chances in November by nominating ultra-extreme MAGA loons? They just might be! This week on The Downballot, Daily Kos Elections contributing editor Steve Singiser joins us to gawk at a bunch of GOP primaries across the nation where hardcore Trump worshippers with blemished resumes and disturbing views could prevail over more mainstream alternatives. On the docket ar...

This week's dreadful news that the Supreme Court is poised to strike down Roe v. Wade underscores more than ever why progressives must build power at the state level. The Downballot hosts Gaby Goldstein, the co-founder of Sister District, to discuss what Democrats in the states are doing to protect abortion rights; how her organization helps connect volunteers with worthy legislative candidates ac...

The 2022 election cycle really gets going next month with primaries in more than a dozen states, so we invited Daily Kos Elections editor Jeff Singer to join us on this week's episode of The Downballot to run us through all the key contests. We analyze some sloppy GOP food fights in Senate races in Alabama, North Carolina, Ohio, and Pennsylvania; a pair of primaries in Oregon and Texas where progr...

Yes, it's a tough-looking midterm, but Democrats can still go on offense! The Downballot takes a deep dive into 10 House districts across the country where Republicans are vulnerable for a variety of reasons, whether due to redistricting, retirements, long-term demographic trends, or plain old GOP infighting. Our tour runs from the eastern tip of Long Island in New York all the way to sunny Southe...

This week on The Downballot, we nerd out with Nathaniel Rakich of FiveThirtyEight, whose path from hobbyist to full-time election analyst closely mirrors the Daily Kos Elections story. Rakich discusses how gerrymandering might have made for a more equal congressional playing field but not necessarily a fair one; what kind of redistricting commissions have actually worked best ; and some of the key...

On this week's episode of The Downballot, we're joined by Ali Lapp, the founder of the House Majority PAC—the largest super PAC devoted to helping Democrats win House races nationwide. Lapp discusses HMP's role in the broader Democratic ecosystem, how the organization decides which districts to target, and promising research showing the positive impacts of a new ad touting Democrats' record on the...

On The Downballot podcast this week, we open up our mailbag! Listeners sent—and we answer—questions on a huge range of topics, including Wisconsin's Senate race, legislative elections in Georgia, how Democrats should address inflation, whether handwriting postcards to voters is an effective tactic, and much more. Special bonus question: Which Republican senator up for re-election this year is most...

Joining us on The Downballot this week is Jessica Post, the president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee —the official arm of the Democratic Party dedicated to winning state legislatures nationwide. Jessica talks with us about how the DLCC picks its targets and helps candidates; the impact of freshly un-gerrymandered maps in Michigan and Pennsylvania; and how Democrats are protecting...

On this week's episode of The Downballot, we're joined by Daniel Nichanian, editor-in-chief of Bolts Magazine , a new digital magazine devoted to elections that impact voting rights and criminal justice. We discuss far-right efforts to take over local election boards—and the progressives who are using those offices to expand voting rights. We further tackle the huge changes we've seen in recent ye...

On this week's episode of The Downballot, we talk with Amanda Litman, the co-founder of Run for Something , an organization she formed in the wake of the 2016 elections to help young, diverse progressives run for office across the country at all levels of the ballot. Litman tells us about the resources they offer to first-time candidates, some of Run for Something's biggest success stories, and he...

On the latest episode of The Downballot, David Nir and David Beard recap the action from Texas' Tuesday primaries, including the runoff between conservative Democrat Henry Cuellar and progressive challenger Jessica Cisneros; the demise of Louie Gohmert's political career; and the shocking developments in Texas' 3rd Congressional District, where a new scandal derailed an unexpected runoff. The co-h...

On the fifth episode of The Downballot, Nir and Beard preview all of the key Texas primary races with Daily Kos Elections editor Jeff Singer. The roster includes progressive Jessica Cisneros' second attempt at booting conservative Democratic Rep. Henry Cueller in the 28th District, plus the absolutely gonzo GOP primary targeting still-under-indictment Attorney General Ken Paxton.  Episode transcri...

On the fourth episode of The Downballot, Beard and Nir take a deep dive into redistricting with Daily Kos Elections contributing editor David Jarman. We walk through the major changes that new congressional maps have wrought in some of the biggest states, including New York, Texas, and Michigan, with a stop to gawk at the infighting that's derailing Republicans in Florida and Missouri. Plus, how w...