Morning Digest: A Philadelphia institution calls it quits after four decades in politics

Rep. Dwight Evans, 71, is retiring after a stroke even as many senior House Democrats hang on

Democratic Rep. Dwight Evans is retiring after a long career in Pennsylvania politics (credit: Dwight Evans Facebook)

Leading Off

PA-03

Pennsylvania Rep. Dwight Evans said Monday that he will not seek a sixth term next year representing the safely blue 3rd District in Philadelphia, an announcement that came a year after he suffered a stroke.

Evans, who is 71, decided to retire at a time when many House Democrats who are his age or older are running again. The congressman, whose condition prevented him from casting any votes during the final seven months of the 118th Congress, also had repeatedly insisted he wanted to seek reelection.

Since returning to work this year, Evans has missed more votes than most members, but he said in March he retained "the passion and the commitment" to keep serving and insisted his health was "[f]ine." On Monday, he reiterated that he was still "in good health and fully capable of continuing to serve" but said that he'd decided to step aside following "discussions this weekend and thoughtful reflection."

Evans also added that he would serve out his term, which means potential successors will have a chance to compete in an open primary next year. Were Evans to resign from office early, a handful of party leaders—rather than voters—would choose a nominee for a special election.

Whoever wins the Democratic nod, though, will have no trouble succeeding Evans in the 3rd District. This constituency favored Kamala Harris 88-11 last year, which, according to calculations by The Downballot, was her best showing in any of the nation's 435 congressional districts.

State Sen. Sharif Street, who also leads the state Democratic Party, quickly announced on Monday that he would run to be that successor. (It's not clear whether he'd have to give up his leadership post to wage a campaign.) Street had recently expressed interest in running when Evans still seemed determined to seek reelection.

The lawmaker, who is the son of former Philadelphia Mayor John Street, would be the first Muslim to represent Pennsylvania in Congress. (John Street beat Evans in the 1999 primary for mayor.)

The younger Street, though, infuriated fellow Democrats during the most recent round of congressional redistricting when he and a Republican colleague proposed a map that would have weakened Democrats in several competitive seats. The plan would have left Street with an open seat to run for in Philadelphia, but it did not go forward. The state Supreme Court ultimately adopted a very different set of boundaries that did not undermine Democrats.

The episode, though, hasn't been forgotten. Democratic consultant J.J. Balaban told Politico after news of Evans' retirement broke, "Any good Democrat should hope it's not Sharif Street because of how he tried to sell out the Democratic delegation. We would have fewer congressional seats if he had carried the day."

Meanwhile, a pair of state representatives, Morgan Cephas and Chris Rabb, informed Politico on Monday that they're each thinking about running. Both Cephas and Rabb had also talked about seeking the 3rd District shortly before Evans announced his departure.

Fellow state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, by contrast, only hinted about his interest for the first time in the hours after Evans made his plans known.

Kenyatta, a vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, put out a statement saying, "I appreciate the supporters who encouraged me to consider a run, but today is Dwight's day and I have nothing to announce." Kenyatta, who unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate in 2022 and state auditor last year, would be the first openly gay member of Congress from the Keystone State.

Whoever eventually replaces Evans will succeed a longtime politician who, despite several stinging electoral setbacks, has spent more than four decades serving the City of Brotherly Love. Evans first rose to national prominence in 2016 when he successfully challenged scandal-ridden Rep. Chaka Fattah in the primary, but he's been an influential voice in state politics for far longer.

It was all the way back in 1980 when Evans first won a seat in the state House; six years later, he sought a promotion by running for lieutenant governor. Evans took third in the primary against Mark Singel, who would prevail in the fall. However, Evans won reelection to the House that year thanks to a state law permitting candidates to seek multiple offices at once.

Evans became the first Black chair of the powerful Appropriations Committee in 1990, but he was far from done trying to win higher office. When he ran for governor in 1994, Singel decisively defeated him in the primary. Republican Tom Ridge would go on to beat Singel in the general election, though, and that year's GOP landslide would leave Evans in the minority in the legislature.

Despite those two statewide losses, though, Evans remained a formidable figure in local politics. Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell feared that Evans could challenge him for renomination in 1995, which would trigger a tough contest between the white incumbent and a prominent Black foe. Evans, though, ultimately sat the race out, and Rendell went on to win the governorship seven years later.

Evans did run for mayor in both 1999 and 2007 but didn't come close to winning the Democratic nomination either time. He had more influence, though, in a pair of primaries when he wasn't on the ballot. Evans backed Tom Wolf for governor in 2014 and Jim Kenney for mayor in 2015, and his endorsements helped each victorious candidate win support from Black voters.

The pair returned the favor in 2016 when Evans challenged Fattah in the primary for what was then numbered the 2nd District. Fattah, who had also lost the 2007 primary for mayor, had been indicted on federal corruption charges the previous year as federal prosecutors said that, among other things, he'd fraudulently tried to conceal campaign debts and attempted to steer public money to a creditor to pay off private debts.

Fattah retained the support of the influential local Democratic Party, but the fallout from the scandal left him without enough money to air ads. Evans, by contrast, was able to get his message out, though he chose not to emphasize his opponent's legal woes. The strategy worked, and Evans prevailed 42-34.

Fattah resigned months later after a jury convicted him on all 22 counts, and local party leaders selected Evans to be their nominee in the November special election for the remaining months of his term—a contest that took place simultaneously with the race for a new two-year term.

Evans' constituency was renumbered the 3rd District in 2018 after the state Supreme Court overturned the GOP's gerrymander and instituted new lines, but the congressman had no trouble keeping it.

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Election Night

San Diego County, CA Board of Supervisors

Democrat Paloma Aguirre and Republican John McCann face off Tuesday in an officially nonpartisan special election that will determine whether Democrats regain their 3-2 majority on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors—or whether Republicans can flip control.

The 1st District, which is based in the southern portion of the county, favored Kamala Harris 59-39 last year as Democratic Supervisor Nora Vargas turned back a GOP foe by a comparable spread. However, both parties are seriously contesting the special election to replace Vargas, who abruptly resigned in December.

The first round of voting in April indicated that McCann, who is mayor of Chula Vista, is capable of running well ahead of Donald Trump, but that he still could struggle to secure enough support to win.

The Republican led the initial vote with 42%, while Aguirre, the mayor of Imperial Beach, was second with 32%. Altogether, however, 54% of voters backed one of the Democratic candidates, while McCann and two minor Republicans secured 45%.

Aguirre is trying to avoid an upset by tying McCann to Trump, saying her opponent would pursue "a Trump Republican agenda that would be a complete disaster for all of San Diego County." McCann, in turn, has tried to avoid national politics while stressing local issues like taxes.

Senate

GA-Sen

Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff holds wide leads on a variety of potential Republican challengers according to a new poll from the GOP firm Cygnal, which puts him up 50-40 against state Insurance Commissioner John King, 50-41 on former University of Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley, and 49-42 versus Rep. Buddy Carter.

There's no word on any client, but Cygnal's memo is very bullish on King, arguing both that he leads in a primary when respondents are read brief "blind" biographies of the candidates without their names attached, and ties Ossoff in an informed ballot test of the general election after voters hear more information about the contenders.

Both King and Carter are officially running while Dooley is still weighing the race. The poll did not include one potential candidate who appears close to joining, though. Punchbowl reports that Rep. Mike Collins is waiting until the end of the second fundraising quarter (which concluded yesterday) to launch a bid, saying that a kickoff "could happen in the coming weeks."

NC-Sen

A horde of North Carolina Republicans are reportedly considering running for the Senate following GOP incumbent Thom Tillis' shock decision to step aside over the weekend.

Morning Digest: Two major GOP retirements boost Democrats' midterm hopes

One of the most oft-mentioned names belongs to Lara Trump, a former Republican National Committee co-chair who just happens to be Donald Trump's daughter-in-law.

Trump confirmed her interest Monday, one day after a source told NBC that when it comes to her likelihood of running, "I'd put it as high as one could be considering it." Politico separately reports that other potential candidates want Donald Trump’s support but "wouldn't dare ask" as long as Lara Trump is interested.

There was intense chatter last year that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis could appoint Trump to the Senate seat that Marco Rubio was vacating to become secretary of state, but she ultimately took her name out of consideration. Trump, who is a North Carolina native, still identifies herself as a Florida resident on her X profile as of Monday evening.

Multiple media outlets have also reported that Rep. Pat Harrigan and Richard Hudson are interested, while RNC chair Mike Whatley has also been the subject of much chatter. An unnamed RNC official told NOTUS that Whatley is "not actively considering a bid for the North Carolina Senate seat," which is not quite a no. Politico also says Whatley is interested, but "won't make a play until he knows Lara's decision."

Punchbowl News wrote Monday that Lara Trump and the trio of Harrigan, Hudson, and Whatley "are in the upper echelon of contenders," though any "final decision will be heavily determined by who President Donald Trump decides to endorse." Hudson currently leads the National Republican Congressional Committee and would presumably need to step aside if he ran for the Senate.

The list doesn't end there, though. Punchbowl adds that Rep. Tim Moore is considering, while The Hill says the same about Rep. Greg Murphy. Neither has said anything publicly about their plans.

Rep. Addison McDowell, meanwhile, did nothing to quiet any chatter that he could run. McDowell put out a statement following Tillis' retirement that said, "This will still be an open Senate seat on July 4th which is still when we want to have this bill done."

Former Rep. Patrick McHenry, who retired last cycle, did not respond to Puck News' inquiry about whether he could run, though he's shown no indication that he's thinking about restarting his political career.

Axios additionally mentions Rep. Brad Knott as a possibility, while Punchbowl lists former Rep. George Holding. Holding retired in 2020 after court-supervised redistricting made his once-gerrymandered seat reliably Democratic, and he's now on the board of the Trump Media and Technology Group.

The Raleigh News & Observer further names some Republicans who lost statewide races last year.

Far-right conspiracy theorist Michele Morrow, who failed to win the race for superintendent of public instruction after ousting the incumbent in the primary, expressed interest in taking on Tillis several months ago but didn't make a move before he retired. The paper also name-drops former Rep. Dan Bishop, who took a post in the Trump administration after losing his bid for attorney general race to Democrat Jeff Jackson.

Finally, there's former Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the self-described "Black Nazi" who lost last year's race for governor in a 55-40 landslide. But Republicans may not have to worry about nominating him this time: Robinson said in February he wouldn't run again, and he went on to endorse a little-known candidate named Don Brown while Tillis was still running.

On the Democratic side, everyone is still eagerly waiting to see if former Gov. Roy Cooper will run. A spokesperson for Cooper said Monday he "will decide in the coming weeks."

Former Rep. Wiley Nickel continues to be the only notable Democratic candidate in the race, though there's talk others could run if Cooper doesn't.

Semafor mentions Jackson as a possibility, while Inside Elections lists three new names: Lt. Gov. Rachel Hunt; former EPA Administrator Michael Regan; and Mandy Cohen, the former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. None, however, has said anything about their interest in running for the Senate.

TX-Sen

Former Democratic Rep. Colin Allred, who's been considering a second Senate bid, is preparing to run again, reports the Washington Post, and will likely announce early this month.

Allred would be the second notable Democrat to join the race, following retired astronaut Terry Virts's entry late last month, though several others are also considering. One potential new addition to the list is former San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg, who just told Texas Public Radio that "he could also be on the midterm ballot." Nirenberg did not, however, specify what office he might seek.

Governors

IA-Gov

State House Speaker Pat Grassley, the grandson of Sen. Chuck Grassley, says he'll seek reelection rather than join the Republican primary for Iowa's open governorship. Grassley's decision could open the door for state Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, who previously said he was considering the race but wouldn't run if Grassley did.

ME-Gov

Republican state Rep. Laurel Libby, who is one of the most prominent hardliners in the Maine legislature, tells the Portland Press Herald's Rachel Ohm that she's "actively exploring a run for governor." Libby added that she's in no hurry to decide whether she'll run to replace Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, who is termed out.

Libby attracted widespread attention in February after her colleagues censured her for publicizing the name and photo of a high school athlete she identified as transgender on social media. That punishment, which passed along party lines in the Democratic-led lower chamber, prohibited her from speaking on the House floor or voting in the chamber unless she apologized.

Libby, however, not only refused to apologize, she also convinced the U.S. Supreme Court in May to restore her right to cast votes as her legal challenges play out. The House subsequently voted to restore her speaking and voting rights, though one member of the Democratic leadership made sure to say this was "not intended to absolve the representative's actions."

Libby is not the only Republican who could join the already busy race for governor. Former state Senate Majority Leader Garrett Mason, who took a distant second in the 2018 primary, informs Ohm he's interested in a second try and is "looking to see how the field shakes out."

Former Rep. Bruce Poliquin, however, did not respond to Ohm's inquiries about his interest. Poliquin narrowly lost reelection to Democrat Jared Golden in 2018 and convincingly lost a 2022 rematch.

State Senate Minority Leader Trey Stewart, likewise, did not return Ohm's request for comment. Stewart didn't rule out challenging Golden back in January, but he doesn't appear to have said anything about the idea since former Gov. Paul LePage launched a campaign for the 2nd Congressional District in May.

NY-Gov, NY-17

After repeatedly saying he would make a decision in June, it's now … not June, and Republican Rep. Mike Lawler still has yet to announce whether he'll run for governor. Instead, in a new statement issued on the last day of the month, the vulnerable congressman said, "I will make a decision in the coming weeks."

Lawler's delay does not come from a position of strength. Multiple polls have shown fellow Rep. Elise Stefanik defeating him in a hypothetical primary by margins ranging from "comfortable" to "devastating," including a new survey from co/efficient that puts Stefanik up 64-8.

It's not clear whether the firm, whose early May poll had Stefanik ahead 56-9, has an interested client. Its president, however, told the New York Post, "Minds are made up and Elise Stefanik looks all but guaranteed to be the Republicans' choice to become the next governor of New York."

SD-Gov

South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson announced his long-awaited campaign for governor on Monday, joining two other high-profile Republicans in what's certain to be a bruising primary.

Johnson, who was first elected to the state's only U.S. House seat in 2018, is trying to claim the office that GOP Gov. Larry Rhoden has held since January. Rhoden, who was elevated from the lieutenant governor's office in January after Kristi Noem resigned to join Donald Trump's cabinet, is still keeping observers guessing whether he'll try to keep his new job.

But one potential opponent, Attorney General Marty Jackley, decided just before Johnson's announcement that he'd run for the congressman's open seat instead. (We have more about that contest in our SD-AL item below.)

Johnson, however, is in for a nasty fight next June, whether or not Rhoden participates. State House Speaker Jon Hansen and wealthy businessman Toby Doeden, who are both prominent social conservatives, are already in the race, and the latter isn't hiding how much he loathes his newest rival.

"It's going to become abundantly clear that there are two choices in June: light versus dark, good versus evil," Doeden told KELO last month. "I'm light; I'm good. Dusty's dark; Dusty's evil. Those are going to be the two choices."

Johnson's team quickly pushed back with a statement casting the choice between the two as between "a work horse" and a "show horse." This isn't the first time the two have come into conflict: Doeden considered challenging Johnson for renomination last year but ultimately decided to finance primary challenges against state legislators he deemed "fake Republicans." Doeden's efforts helped challengers defeat more than a dozen incumbents.

There's a small chance this primary could go into overtime, as South Dakota requires candidates for governor or Congress to win at least 35% of the vote to avoid a runoff. It doesn't appear, though, that a second round of voting has ever been needed in a gubernatorial race.

House

IA-02

Former U.S. Attorney Kevin Techau said Monday he was ending his campaign against Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson because his "fundraising simply hasn't met the threshold level that this race demands." Techau was the only prominent Democrat running to flip Iowa's 2nd District, which favored Donald Trump 54-44 last year.

KY-04

State Sen. Aaron Reed, who said in May that reports he might run against Rep. Thomas Massie were "[f]ake news," will reportedly meet with aides to Donald Trump to discuss running against Rep. Thomas Massie.

Politico, which broke the story, says the get-together is expected "in the coming weeks," though Reed did not respond to a request for comment. The site also notes that after Massie backed Reed's bid for the legislature last year, Reed called him "one of America's greatest Congressmen."

Reed is a member of a nascent and loose-knit fraternity known as "Liberty" Republicans, a libertarian-ish collection of Kentucky politicians who had success at the ballot box in 2024. In a piece from 2022 for the Louisville Courier Journal, Joe Sonka said Massie is "generally regarded as the ideological leader of this liberty wing" and noted on social media that Reed originally entered politics at Massie's urging.

NE-02

Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon on Monday confirmed reports from over the weekend that he would retire rather than seek a sixth term next year, opening the floodgates for fellow Republicans eager to succeed him.

In comments to the Wall Street Journal, Bacon talked up two potential successors, Omaha City Councilman Brinker Harding and former state Sen. Brett Lindstrom. Harding wouldn't comment but told the paper he'd have an announcement on Tuesday. The Journal adds that Chris Chappelear, a former chair of the Nebraska Federation of Young Republicans, is weighing the race as well.

NOTUS reporter Reese Gorman, meanwhile, says that Lindstrom is the target of GOP recruitment efforts, along with Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson and another member of the City Council, Aimee Melton.

The Nebraska Examiner also adds that far-right businessman Dan Frei could make another go of it. Frei challenged Bacon last year but lost 62-38. Axios, finally, tosses in former Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert, who was ousted by Democrat John Ewing in a 57-43 landslide as she sought a fourth term in May.

Democrats already had several candidates running before Bacon called it quits, but his departure is likely to generate new interest, particularly since Nebraska's 2nd District last saw an open-seat race in 1998.

Inside Elections' Jacob Rubashkin mentions former football player Tony Veland, who won two championships with the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the mid-1990s, then won the Super Bowl with the Denver Broncos in 1996 during a brief NFL career. (Veland's college coach was none other than Tom Osborn, who went on to represent Nebraska's 3rd District for three terms.)

Rubashkin also flags Kishla Askins, a former Veterans Department official who served in both the Navy and the Marine Corps as a medical official. Neither she nor Veland has publicly spoken about their interest.

SD-AL

With Rep. Dusty Johnson kicking off a bid for governor on Monday, several South Dakota Republicans are interested in replacing him in the House—though one didn't even wait until the congressman's announcement.

Attorney General Marty Jackley, who'd been considering a gubernatorial campaign himself, told the Argus Leader on Friday that he'd run for Johnson's seat instead. Jackley also released an internal poll of a hypothetical primary from Guidant Polling that shows him winning 48% of the vote, while two potential rivals both take just 5% apiece and 42% are undecided.

One of those possible opponents, Lt. Gov. Tony Venhuizen, didn't rule out a bid when asked about the survey by The Dakota Scout's Joe Sneve, though Sneve thinks he'd be unlikely to go for it if Gov. Larry Rhoden runs for a full term next year. Matthew Kline of Cook Political Report says that Venhuizen is indeed weighing the idea.

The other contender tested in Jackley's poll, state Sen. Casey Crabtree, released a statement on Monday saying he's "strongly considering" the race. Sneve adds that state Sen. Amber Hulse is "rumored to be considering." Hulse was not included in the survey and does not appear to have commented yet.

Mayors & County Leaders

King County, WA Executive

King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay showcases his support from two of the state's most prominent Democrats in a new ad for the Aug. 5 top-two primary to lead Washington's largest county.

Gov. Bob Ferguson tells the audience that Zahilay "delivered five new mental health and addiction centers, and more affordable housing." Rep. Pramila Jayapal then extols him as "the partner I need to defend our values."

Zahilay and another councilmember, Claudia Balducci, are the favorites to advance to the November general election to succeed County Executive Dow Constantine, a fellow Democrat who is retiring after four terms. A third local office-holder, County Assessor John Wilson, remains in the race even after a former domestic partner accused him of stalking and harassing her.

New Orleans, LA Mayor

State Sen. Royce Duplessis unexpectedly announced Sunday that he was joining this fall's race for mayor of New Orleans, an about-face that came almost six months after he initially said he wouldn't run to replace termed-out incumbent LaToya Cantrell.

Duplessis cited fundraising concerns when he demurred in January, but he did not address the topic in his new announcement. The lawmaker said instead that he'd changed his mind "after continuing to listen to the people of this city" and their "lack of faith in the future."

Duplessis entered the race just weeks after a pair of polls showed City Councilwoman Helena Moreno with wide leads over City Councilman Oliver Thomas and former Judge Arthur Hunter in the Oct. 11 contest. (All four candidates are Democrats.) It takes a majority of the vote to avoid a November runoff. Candidate filing closes on July 11.

Correction: This piece incorrectly used the 2020 presidential election results for San Diego County’s 1st Supervisor District instead of the 2024 results. Kamala Harris carried this constituency 59-39 in 2024, while Joe Biden won it 67-31 in 2020.