Alabama, 1932: Sen. Hugo Black (D) won 49.7% in primary vs ex-Gov. Thomas E. Kilby (30.9%).
Black then won runoff, 58%-42%.
Black resigned from the Senate in 1937 after it confirmed him for FDR's Supreme Court
North Carolina, 1972: Democratic Sen. B. Everett Jordan (44%) pulled into primary runoff against Rep. Nick Galifianakis (49%), actor-comedian Zach’s uncle.
Galifianakis ousted Jordan in runoff, 56%-44%, but lost in November to Jesse Helms (R).
Arkansas 1972: 76-year-old Sen. John McClellan (45% in first primary) was pulled into a Democratic runoff with 37-year-old Rep. David Pryor (41%). McClellan won the runoff 2 weeks later, 52%-48%
Pryor would later serve as governor and senator.
Last one (AL GOP 2017) also included 3 major candidates who were a tall silvery-haired senator, a staunch conservative sometimes described as a culture warrior, and a US House member!
But a different race. Cornyn led Round 1 by 42%-41%, Strange (w/Trump endorsement) trailed 33%-39%.
Wrote about the past few times US Senators were pulled into party primary runoff elections: news.bgov.com/bloomberg-go...
Oklahoma revised its US Senate vacancy law in 2021: t.co/ZstFC0ab8j
A couple of charts from the first issue
Members of Congress Defeated for Renomination, 1966-present
docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
Texas race & political performance by county:
docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
Happy primary day in Texas, North Carolina, and Arkansas! My first BGOV Election Day newsletter is out. Hope you’ll consider signing up.
news.bloomberglaw.com/bgov-electio...
"We must impeach." - Rep. Al Green (D-TX) in TV ad with image of him waving cane toward Trump at March 2025 address to joint session (functionally the same as a #SOTU)
host2.adimpact.com/admo/viewer/...
Green vs new Rep. Christian Menefee (D) in Dem primary next Tuesday in redrawn #tx18
Some personal news: I'm rejoining @bgov.com as their senior budget reporter!
If you're working on spending and revenue issues on Capitol Hill — as a lawmaker, aide, or lobbyist — I want to hear from you! Let's grab coffee.
Two future presidents participated in the 1968 Republican response to LBJ's #SOTU:
Gerald Ford, then the House Minority Leader, and George HW Bush, then a first-term House member from Texas t.co/CR5K2muSA2 (excerpted from NYT, 1/24/68)
Any history of #SOTU opposition responses must mention the 1985 Democratic production hosted by then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton.
Genesis music! ("Turn It On Again") t.co/RITJH3c2NE
Democratic politicians participated in focus group panels after Reagan landslide
Escobar, who spoke with me last week, delivered a Spanish-language response to Trump’s 2020 #SOTU from a health clinic in El Paso
“I think it’s very, very important for my party — not just as a response to the State of the Union address, but in response to what is happening in America right now at the hands of a Republican trifecta — to offer an alternative vision to America." -Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas)
List of opposition responses to the #SOTU per Senate Historical Office: t.co/Im21EwLKgT
The 1st official televised rebuttal to a president's State of the Union came in 1966, when Senate Minority Leader Everett Dirksen and House Minority Leader Gerald Ford responded five days after LBJ's #SOTU: t.co/Tas49lzpKJ
Of the 51 sitting US House members who aren't running for re-election, 27 (19R/8D) are seeking other political office.
news.bgov.com/bloomberg-go...
#NJ11 (D): Analilia Mejia leads Tom Malinowski by 889 votes after she netted 21 votes from an update in Essex County.
The Fairshake super PAC network, with >$190 million cash from crypto industry, reported its first 2026 independent expenditures this weekend: its GOP arm aiding House Financial Services Chair French Hill (R-Ark.), who leads committee of jurisdiction. Arkansas primary March 3.
“A lot of members don’t really care that much about crypto, but they would rather not be on the industry’s enemies list."
news.bgov.com/bloomberg-go... #Crypto
"The risk is, we think, worth it."
"I think the governor and I share the view, once somebody hits you in the nose, probably you ought to either duck or hit them back in the nose. That's what this is."
Steny Hoyer on Maryland redistricting
news.bgov.com/bloomberg-go...
“The justices on Wednesday denied a request from the California Republican party and the US Department of Justice to prevent the state from using its new voter-approved map on the grounds that it was racially gerrymandered and therefore illegal.”
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Goldman: “gerrymandering is one of the most corrupting influences on our democracy” but “we gotta fight fire with fire right now and win, and then we can fix our campaign finance system, we can fix gerrymandering ... We can try to fix many things when we're in power.”
news.bgov.com/bloomberg-go...
We’ve done dozens of BGOV Capitol Roundtables with members of Congress and other newsmakers. If you’d like your boss to do one, let’s talk!
“This is all seemingly part of a master plan to rig the upcoming election.”
From new Bloomberg Government Capitol Roundtable this AM with @repdangoldman.bsky.social
news.bgov.com/bloomberg-go... #NY10
It's been a while. Last time we had 435 was for a three-day period in late 2023 -- Celeste Maloy (R-Utah) took office on Nov. 28, 2023 to bring the House to full membership, then George Santos (R-NY) was expelled Dec. 1.
Maryland's Democratic-controlled House of Delegates passed new congressional map in a 99-37 vote. news.bgov.com/bloomberg-go...
Haven't had a full 435 in the House this 119th Congress
Menefee, Green, and Menefee runoff opponent Amanda Edwards are candidates in March 3 Democratic primary for full term in GOP-redrawn #TX18, where 65% of people are Green's current 9th District constituents and 26% are Menefee's. Early voting begins Feb. 17.
