Hispanics and favoritism: Tension among congressional Democrats over leaders' endorsements of candidates in primaries

The waters are troubled among Democratic ranks on Capitol Hill. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's (DCCC) endorsement of several candidates who have yet to win their primaries has sparked a revolt from several House members critical of the move. Among them is Rep. Linda Sánchez, chairwoman of BOLD PAC, the political arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, who denounced what she calls discrimination against Latino hopefuls by Democratic leadership.

In a statement, the political action group harshly lamented that the DCCC preferred non-Hispanic candidates over Randy Villegas in California and Carol Obando-Derstine in Pennsylvania. Sánchez, moreover again stressed the importance of Latino voters, whose performance was key to the defeat of Kamala Harris in 2024:

"Latino voters and candidates — like Randy and Carol — are not a small factor in the fight for the House majority; they are central to it. The Democratic Party has clearly made progress earning Latino trust, but we still have a long way to go, and we will be with Randy and Carol every step of the way through their primaries."

"It is the voters, not the DCCC, who should choose the Democratic candidates"

The performance of Democratic leaders with Hakeem Jeffries leading the way has also been questioned by the House Progressive Caucus, which criticized the DCCC for seeking to impose candidates when they have not yet been voted on. "Voters, not the DCCC, should pick Democratic nominees," several of its leaders told Axios.

The movement for many groups goes beyond the support that has always been given within a party to one or more candidates over others. Thus, David Hogg, co-founder of Leaders We Deserve, criticized that "The Democratic establishment is wasting resources in primaries to prop up weak candidates. Spending critical dollars on Bains (Villegas' rival)... is a huge miss from the DCCC."

Ravi Mangla, a spokesman for the Working Families Party, charged that, with the selection of their favorites, "the Democratic establishment is again putting its thumb on the scale—not to support the stronger candidate, but the candidate who will bend to party leadership."

Criticism swelled after the DCCC announced May 4 the second wave of candidates it supports under its "Red to Blue" program. On this occasion, there were eight candidates (of whom five have not yet won their primaries) who were added to the original 12 candidates. That brings the total to 20 candidates the Democratic leadership is relying on to flip several key seats for control of the House after the midterms.

The DCCC assures that the selection follows very strict criteria

However, DCCC Chairwoman Suzan DelBene sought to justify her choice by pointing out that "candidates earn a spot on the ticket by passing very demanding goals in terms of citizen participation, local support, campaign organization and fundraising. They reflect the strength of our people-centered message and the broad appeal of our top-tier candidates."

In addition, DCCC spokesman Viet Sheldon added, "It is imperative that Democrats take back the House of Representatives. That's why we are proud to announce our latest batch of 'Red to Blue' candidates, who span the entire ideological spectrum.... and are best positioned to win in November."

The DCCC wanted to emphasize that four of the candidates it endorses are Hispanic, trying to avoid controversy with this key demographic group, and whose contest will be decisive at the polls on Nov. 3.