WASHINGTON—The DLCC’s impressive streak of overperformance in special elections continues after DLCC Spotlight candidates Peter Herzberg and Mai Xiong emerged victorious in their House races in Michigan last night, protecting the Democratic trifecta and delivering a strong rebuke of GOP extremism.
Rep.-elect Herzberg and Rep.-elect Xiong are just the latest in a string of Democratic candidates this year alone who’ve overperformed in their districts in blue, battleground, and red states. This success illustrates that voters are lining up behind champions of fundamental freedoms.
- In January, Tom Keen defied the odds in Florida and defeated a MAGA extremist in the first legislative flip of 2024. Keen overperformed in a seat that Gov. Ron DeSantis won in 2022 by 11.
- The Democratic House majority in Pennsylvania was protected when Jim Prokopiak won a critical seat in Bucks County by a whopping 35 points, keeping the speaker’s gavel in Democrats’ hands. In 2020, Biden won this district by 10 at the presidential level, meaning Prokopiak overperformed President Biden’s margin by 25 points.
- In a political earthquake victory in March, Marilyn Lands clinched a victory in one of the reddest states in the country after centering her campaign on reproductive rights in the wake of the devastating IVF ruling from the state Supreme Court. In 2022, Marilyn lost this district by 7 points, yet won by a whopping 25 points last month.
- Rep.-elect Herzberg and Rep.-elect Xiong both won their races by over 20 points last night.
These consecutive Democratic wins this year are just the latest in a long line of DLCC victories in special elections. In 2022, the DLCC defended every single Democratic majority and flipped four chambers from red to blue, and had a full sweep of wins in the November 2023 elections. Democrats also overperformed in special elections last year by an average of 6 points, and we’ll look to carry our recent success into November. These victories bode well for Democratic success up and down the ballot in 2024, and the DLCC is committed to capitalizing on every opportunity to build and expand on Democratic power.
Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee Communications Director Abhi Rahman issued the following statement:
“In the face of rampant GOP extremism, voters continue to line up in force behind Democrats who champion fundamental freedoms. Everything from abortion access to democracy to LGBTQ+ freedoms is being decided in the states, and voters are holding Republicans accountable at the polls for their egregious attacks. From the heart of red-state territory in Alabama and Florida to the most competitive battleground states in Michigan and Pennsylvania, the DLCC has shown it has a roadmap for success. Our momentum is undeniable as we continue to build on our victories from 2022 and 2023. These victories bode well for candidates up and down the ballot in November, and we look forward to more success for Democrats in state legislatures as they push for progress in their states. 2024 is the most important year in state legislative history – this is the year of the states.”
The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) is the official Democratic Party committee dedicated to winning America’s state legislatures and building state infrastructure. Over the last decade, we have fought cycle-over-cycle to gain a dozen new legislative chamber majorities and we are leading the effort to bring national attention and investment to our ballot level. State legislatures are the building blocks of our democracy and have the closest connections to Americans’ day-to-day lives. From protecting fundamental freedoms and voting rights to growing the middle class, the DLCC and state legislators are moving the Democratic agenda forward and shaping the future of this country.
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