Daily Brew: January 14, 2019

January 14, 2019

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Today's Brew includes our most recent congressional analysis + a presidential flashback   Welcome to the Monday, January 14 Brew. Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: Democrats now hold 31 congressional districts that Trump won in 2016 Six candidates file to run in Minnesota State Senate special election Flashback to three years ago today - presidential primary debates Democrats now hold 31 congressional districts that Trump won in 2016 The new U.S. Congress is facing divided government, a shutdown, and new leadership priorities under a Democratic majority in the House of Representatives. As we move beyond the 2018 elections and closer to 2020, let’s take a closer look at some of the districts won by the opposite party's presidential candidate in 2016. Republicans ceded ground in Clinton districts—they hold three that she won in 2016, down from 25 before the 2018 elections. In other words, Democratic Party candidates won 22 districts in the 2018 elections where Republicans had won in 2016. The three remaining Republican-held districts are: New York's 24th, represented by John Katko Pennsylvania's 1st, represented by Brian Fitzpatrick Texas' 23rd, represented by Will Hurd Democrats also made gains in Trump districts and now hold 31 congressional districts that he won in 2016. They held 13 of those districts before the 2018 elections. The current Democratic districts that Trump won in 2016 are located in the following states: Arizona Georgia Illinois Iowa Maine Michigan Minnesota Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York Oklahoma Pennsylvania South Carolina Utah Virginia Wisconsin Click here to start preparing for 2020 elections in the U.S. House Have you read the book Blindspot by Mahzarin R. Banaji and Anthony G. Greenwald? Join us on Tuesday, January 15 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern for a 30-minute book discussion with Ballotpedia staff and our readers. Click to register here. Six candidates file to run in Minnesota State Senate special election The candidate filing deadline passed on January 8 for the special election in District 11 of the Minnesota State Senate. Michelle Lee and Stu Lourey, the son of the most recent incumbent, will face off in the Democratic primary on January 22. Justin Krych, Carl Pederson, Jason Rarick, and Matthias Shir are running in the Republican primary. The general election will take place on February 5. District 11 became vacant when Tony Lourey (D) resigned in January 2019 after Gov. Tim Walz (D) appointed Lourey to serve as human services commissioner.  Lourey was elected to District 11 in 2006. He last won re-election in 2016 with 55 percent of the vote. The Minnesota State Senate currently has 32 Democrats, 34 Republicans, and one vacancy.  Minnesota currently operates under divided government. Republicans control the state senate, Democrats gained control of the state house in the 2018 elections, and the governorship is held by Tim Walz (D). In 2019, 21 state legislative special elections have been scheduled or held in 11 states.  Between 2011 and 2018, an average of 77 special elections took place each year. Learn more→ Flashback to three years ago today - presidential primary debates On this night three years ago, the Republican Party held its sixth debate of the presidential primary cycle. Taking place in North Charleston, SC, seven candidates participated in the primetime debate, while three candidates were involved in the undercard. The primetime debate was hosted by the Fox Business Network and moderated by Neil Cavuto and Maria Bartiromo. The following candidates participated in the primetime debate: Donald Trump Ted Cruz Ben Carson Marco Rubio Chris Christie Jeb Bush John Kasich The undercard featured Carly Fiorina, Mike Huckabee, and Rick Santorum. Rand Paul, who was still an active presidential candidate, chose not to participate in the undercard after he was not invited to the primetime debate. The Republican Party held 12 debates during the presidential primary of 2016, while the Democratic Party held nine debates. On December 20, 2018, the Democratic National Committee announced plans to host a minimum of 12 debates for the party's presidential primary candidates. The schedule sets the first debate in June 2019 and the final debate in April 2020, with six debates occurring in each year. The Iowa caucuses kicking off the 2020 presidential primary are set for February 3, 2020. One click to sign up for Ballotpedia’s free daily presidential briefing to stay current on all of the news and updates. As a fun aside, here are the most used words by then-candidate Trump during this debate:   Learn more→