Illinois Rep. Cheri Bustos says she knows, from first-hand experience prevailing in a Trump district, how the party can protect its newly won majority in the 2020 elections. Bustos, the only midwesterner in party leadership, is one of four candidates for election on Wednesday to chair the Democratic campaign committee, a job that can launch a leadership career if Democrats win on election day.
A member of the House Agriculture Committee, Bustos was chair of heartland engagement at the DCCC, as the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is known, ahead of the Nov. 6 mid-term elections. In announcing candidacy for DCCC chair, Bustos said she “spent countless hours recruiting, mentoring, fundraising and traveling to support candidates across 12 states — 15 of whom helped deliver our majority.”
“As we prepare in 2020 to defend as many as 33 House seats on Trump turf, this is something I already live and breathe every day of my congressional career,” said Bustos, who represents a largely rural and blue-collar district in northwestern and west-central Illinois. The district includes the industrial hub of Rock Island and Moline, home of equipment manufacturing giant Deere and Co. The district voted narrowly for Trump in 2016 but Bustos was elected on Nov. 6 to her fourth term by a 3-to-2 margin. It was the largest victory margin for any Democrat in a Trump district.
Also running for DCCC chair are Sean Patrick Maloney of upstate New York, also an Agriculture Committee member, and Denny Heck and Suzan DelBene, both from Washington state. All three have DCCC experience. Heck was in charge of candidate recruitment for 2018 and DelBene was co-chair of finance. Heck told Roll Call he would try to pick off vulnerable Republicans while defending the Democratic majority. DelBene, a former Microsoft executive, said she would use new technology to reach voters who don’t watch TV or respond to phone calls. Maloney carried out a months-long review of DCCC’s inner workings after the 2016 election, when Democrats gained six seats. They have been the minority party since the 2010 elections.
New Mexico Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, who as DCCC chair oversaw the biggest Democratic victory in House elections since Watergate, is running for assistant Democratic leader. Democrats picked up 38 House seats with two races still undecided. At the moment they have a 233-200 advantage over Republicans for the two-year session that begins in January.
In the past, Democratic leaders chose the DCCC chair; this is the first time the job will be decided by election.
Democrats won control of the House with victories in suburban districts. Rural America voted strongly for Republicans and urban areas voted for Democrats. Former agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack is among Democrats who say the party has to expand its appeal to rural voters to assure national success. Rural voters were key to Trump’s election.
“Having worked extremely hard to help win races across the Heartland, I view this (the DCCC race) as an opportunity to continue my work while bringing the voice of both a woman and a Midwesterner to the leadership table,” said Bustos. Her position as co-chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee makes her the only Midwesterner in House Democratic leadership.