Former Democratic House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer to announce retirement after more than 40 years in Congress
Representative Steny Hoyer, a Democrat from Maryland and ranking member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, during a hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, May 15, 2025. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., the former No. 2 Democrat in the chamber who has served for decades, is set to announce his retirement from Congress, his office confirmed to ABC News.
Hoyer will formally announce his decision not to run for reelection on the House floor at 10 a.m. Thursday.
Hoyer, 86, spent two decades as Nancy Pelosi’s deputy and is set to retire as the California Democrat also prepares to leave Congress at the end of the year — amid a debate in the party about turning over leadership to a new generation.
Their relationship dates back to the 1960s when they served as congressional interns together, decades before they competed to lead Democrats.
The genteel dean of the Maryland delegation, who helped send billions of federal dollars to his state as an appropriator, was often a key negotiating partner for Republican leaders who maintained better relations with him than the hard-charging Pelosi.
Many Democrats are now turning to see if 85-year-old Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, the longtime No. 3 Democrat on the team, will follow through on plans to run for reelection next year.
(WASHINGTON) — When a federal court Tuesday dropped its bombshell 160-page decision invalidating Texas Republicans’ mid-decade redistricting effort as blatant racial gerrymandering, there was one big missing piece of the puzzle: a dissent.
It turns out Trump-appointed Judge Jeffrey V. Brown, who authored the majority opinion, didn’t allow dissenting Judge Jerry E. Smith, a Reagan appointee, much time to respond in writing, releasing the ruling before the counterpoint was finished, as is customary.
“Fasten your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy night!” Smith wrote bluntly in a statement released late Wednesday.
What followed was a remarkable statement of sharp personal criticism and vigorous legal argument, notable both for its tone and rationale, which could potentially influence members of the Supreme Court who will ultimately decide the fate of Texas’ 2025 map.
Smith, a member of the federal bench for more than 37 years, repeated the phrase “I dissent” 15 times over 100 pages.
He accused Brown of “pernicious judicial misbehavior” — the “most outrageous conduct by a judge that I have ever encountered” — for not waiting to consider his dissent before going public with the ruling.
Brown’s opinion, joined by Judge David Guaderrama, an Obama appointee, and released Tuesday afternoon, blocked Texas from deploying a new congressional map for the 2026 midterm elections, concluding “substantial evidence show that Texas racially gerrymandered the map.”
The decision roiled a nationwide redistricting arms race initiated by President Donald Trump as part of a bid to retain Republican control of the narrowly divided House of Representatives. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has said he will appeal.
Brown concluded that the entire redrawing effort — which typically only happens once every decade — was undertaken primarily in response to an explicit Trump Justice Department request “based entirely on the racial makeup” of four Democrat-held districts.
Federal law and Supreme Court precedent prohibit race as a predominant factor when drawing maps that either intentionally disenfranchise minority voters or otherwise effectively dilute their influence.
The judge further reasoned that his opinion had to be released expeditiously — even before the dissent was finished — because of the urgent need for state officials to have certainty about the outcome in order to prepare for election season.
Smith accused Brown of doing the bidding of liberal billionaire activist George Soros and Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom. “If there were a Nobel Prize for fiction, Judge Brown’s opinion would be a prime candidate,” Smith wrote.
“If this were a law school exam, the opinion would deserve an ‘F,'” he said later in an unusually harsh rebuke.
Smith defended Texas’ mid-decade redrawn map as a purely partisan and entirely legal exercise.
“The most obvious reason for mid-cycle redistricting, of course, is partisan gain,” not deliberate racial animus, Smith wrote. He noted the Supreme Court has said courts must stay away from interfering with the political exercise of map-drawing.
Smith concluded his dissent with a remarkable bullet-point list of what he calls “misleading, deceptive, or false statements” that Brown made in the opinion — a highly unusual move in the buttoned-up world of judicial decorum.
Texas has not yet formally filed its appeal with the Supreme Court but is expected to do so quickly and will likely draw upon Smith’s dissent.
(NEW YORK) — Beginning Saturday, some 42 million low-income Americans, including 16 million children, lost access to benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as the government shutdown continues.
The Department of Agriculture has said that funding for this month’s benefits, which it says comes to about $9.5 billion, has run dry.
A federal judge in Rhode Island temporarily ordered the Trump administration on Friday to continue SNAP funding, following a lawsuit by several states. Another judge in Boston ruled that the Trump administration’s attempt to suspend SNAP funding is “unlawful,” but declined to immediately order that the program be funded.
Trump said Friday that his administration’s lawyers are not sure they have the legal authority to pay for SNAP during the government shutdown and said he has asked for clarity from the courts in the wake of two recent decisions.
“If we are given the appropriate legal direction by the Court, it will BE MY HONOR to provide the funding, just like I did with Military and Law Enforcement Pay,” Trump said in a social media post.
The administration has used funds for other services to fund military pay during the shutdown.
SNAP has traditionally been entirely federally funded, but is administered by states. That means the shutdown’s impact on SNAP and when benefits will start to become unavailable will vary by state.
Some states have initiated their own contingency plans, using their own funding in most cases, to keep their SNAPs running.
Here is a list of what states have announced so far:
Arizona On Oct. 29, Arizona Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs announced the state would be deploying $1.8 million in funds to offset the loss of SNAP.
Of that money, 1.5 million, she said, “will be allocated to food banks across the state to fill gaps for SNAP households seeking food,” while the remainder will be used by Food Bucks Now, an emergency fresh food program that provides vouchers for vegetables and produce.
California The state allocated $80 million to food banks across the state, according to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis sent a request last week to the state legislature to approve “$10 million in General Fund revenue to support food banks and pantries, and another to extend previously approved funding for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nutrition access through November.”
Connecticut Three million dollars in emergency funding was given to Connecticut Foodshare, a nonprofit that helps food banks in the state, Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont said on Oct. 27.
Delaware Democratic Gov. Matt Meyer declared a state of emergency on Oct. 29 that “ordered that funds be identified and transferred to the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) for the continuation of SNAP payments.”
Payments will be made weekly.
Hawaii On Oct. 29, the state has launched the Hawaiʻi Relief Program which will provide “up to four months of TANF support for housing and utility payments for eligible families who have at least one dependent child in their household and are in financial crisis or have an episode of need.”
Residents who are not SNAP beneficiaries can apply, according to Gov. Josh Green.
The state also donated $2 million to food banks.
Illinois Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker signed an executive order on Oct. 30 that allocated $25 million in state funding to food banks.
Iowa The state was ordered by Gov. Kim Reynolds to match up to $1 million in donations to the state’s food banks.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry declared a state of emergency on Oct. 24 and ordered the state legislature to authorize stabilization funds to help residents in need.
As of Oct 31, the legislature has not given the authorization.
Maine One million dollars from Democratic Gov. Janet Mills’s office will be sent to food banks.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore issued a state of emergency on Oct. 30 and allocated $10 million to food banks
Massachusetts The Massachusetts Emergency Food Assistance program, which provides food assistance, received an additional $4 million in state funding, Democratic Gov. Maura Healey announced Thursday.
Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz announced on Oct. 27 that he had allocated $4 million to food banks.
Missouri Five million dollars from the state has been delivered to food banks, Democratic Gov. Mike Kehoe said Oct. 29.
An additional $10.6 million fund transfer was sent to Missouri Area Agencies on Aging for programs to feed seniors.
New Mexico Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced on Oct. 29 that the state would distribute $30 million in state-funded food benefits onto existing EBT cards for eligible New Mexicans.
New York A state of emergency was declared on Oct. 30 by Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul.
The governor announced that the state would provide $40 million in new funding for the Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program, which provides emergency food relief, and $25 million to Nourish N.Y., which supplies surplus agricultural products to food banks.
North Carolina The state will offer $10 million to state food banks, Democratic Gov. Josh Stein said on Oct. 30. An additional $8 million will be funded by private organizations and charities in partnership with the state, the governor said.
North Dakota Republican Gov. Kelly Armstrong announced on Oct. 30 that he allocated $915,000 of state funds to food banks and $600,000 for the state’s (WIC) program.
Ohio Twenty-five million in state funding will be used to offset SNAP losses, GOP Gov. Mike DeWine said after he signed an executive order on Oct. 30.
As part of the order, as much as $18 million in emergency relief benefits will be given to Ohio residents who are at or below 50% of the federal poverty level. Seven million dollars will also be donated to food banks.
Oregon Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek declared a food emergency on Oct. 29 that will be in effect in November and December.
Kotek ordered that “$5 million from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) carryover funds,” be sent to food banks.
“TANF carryover is unspent federal TANF funding from prior years that remains available until used,” the governor’s office said in a news release.
Rhode Island A state of emergency was issued by Democratic Gov. Dan McGee on Oct. 28 and he allocated $6 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) to 20,000 eligible families.
He also allocated “$200,000 of Social Services Block Grant funding to enhance capacity at the RI Community Food Bank,” according to the governor’s office.
Virginia GOP Gov. Glen Youngkin issued a state of emergency and launched the Virginia Emergency Nutrition Assistance (VENA) initiative.
The program will provide residents with state funds weekly to be used in lieu of SNAP through November. A million dollars will also be allocated to food banks.
Washington The state will provide $2.2 million per week to food banks across Washington until SNAP funding is restored, according to Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson.
West Virginia Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced on Oct. 28 that the state would be supporting a food drive and match up to $13 million in donations to food banks.
(NEW YORK) — The ballooning field of Democratic candidates to succeed the term-limited Gavin Newsom as governor of California has political operatives stunned.
“This is as wide open as I’ve ever seen anything in 25 years,” said Steven Maviglio, a Sacramento-based Democratic strategist.
The challenge for those running will be proving to voters they can tackle California’s cost-of-living crisis, as well as fill the high-profile void Newsom will leave behind as a national leader in Democrats’ fight against President Donald Trump.
Last week, Rep. Eric Swalwell, who made a name for himself as an anti-Trump firebrand in the House of Representatives and launched a short-lived bid for the White House in 2020, announced his campaign for governor on ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” telling Kimmel that California “needs a fighter and a protector.”
Billionaire Tom Steyer, who also ran an unsuccessful campaign for president in 2020, announced his campaign the day before. Steyer, who is well-known in progressive circles for his environmental advocacy, spent millions backing Newsom’s recent Proposition 50 redistricting push.
“Everyone in this race is going to talk about affordability, but what Californians care about is results, and who’s going to be able to deliver when it comes to lowering costs. And Tom has a record of getting things done for California, even when the real politicians couldn’t,” a spokesperson for Steyer said.
Both Swalwell and Steyer join a crowded field of prominent Democrats, such as former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
“I am a proven problem solver,” Villaraigosa told ABC News in a statement.
“As the Speaker of the California Assembly, I extended affordable health care to millions of children and I passed the toughest assault weapons ban in America. As Mayor, I reduced crime by 50% and increased our school graduation rate by 60%. No other candidate for governor has delivered results like those,” Villaraigosa added.
Villaraigosa is jockeying for position among other California politicians, including former Rep. Katie Porter and former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who was also secretary of Health and Human Services in the Biden administration.
“Secretary Becerra is the only candidate in this race to take on the Trump Administration and win, suing 122 times to protect Californians as Attorney General. He delivered affordable care for millions and he negotiated lower drug prices to save California families thousands of dollars,” a Becerra campaign spokesperson told ABC News in a statement.
Strategists are surprised that no candidate has clearly established themselves as a front-runner, signaling some instability in the race to lead a state of nearly 40 million people.
“It’s one of the most consequential races in the entire country that nobody’s ever heard of yet,” Democratic strategist Danielle Cendejas said. “There is a lot on the line who the next governor is.”
“A historically weak field” Democratic strategist Matt Rodriguez believes the reason the primary is so crowded is because no one candidate is very strong.
“I think it’s a very weak field, a historically weak field,” he said.
California employs a “jungle” or “top-two” primary, in which there is one nonpartisan primary for all candidates, with the top two candidates in the primary moving on to a runoff in November, regardless of party.
Rodriguez said having so many Democratic candidates in a jungle primary “definitely gives an advantage to a Republican getting into the top two. At some point, there’s just only so many Democratic voters to split up here.”
Maviglio said two Republicans ending up in the general election is “possible, not probable.”
“We’ve only seen it in legislative races a couple of times, where the party that actually has the majority doesn’t make it into the November election because of strangeness like that happening,” he said.
Slim chance for a Republican candidate GOP strategist and former executive director of the California Republican Party Jon Fleischman said that even if a Republican makes it to the general election, they would have a slim chance at winning the whole thing.
“Maybe the most important thing to remember in California is that if you have a general election between a Republican and a Democrat, unless some massive scandal of epic proportion were to strike the Democrat, we’re a blue state,” Felischman said.
“The only time it gets maybe more interesting is if two Democrats make the runoff,” Felischman added.
There are currently two major Republican candidates in the race, one of whom is former Fox News host Steve Hilton.
“A crowded Democratic field means those candidates will spend months fighting each other and defending the status quo, while Steve Hilton is focused on changing it,” Hilton campaign manager Matt Ciepielowski told ABC News in a statement.
“Californians are tired of the highest poverty in the nation, sky-high housing costs, failing schools, and a government that serves special interests instead of working families. Steve is running to make California affordable, safe, and full of opportunity again,” the statement continued.
The other major Republican running is Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, who is emphasizing his law enforcement background to define himself as someone who will be tough on crime.
“Each Democrat running is hoping to be a more liberal version of the narcissist that is currently the Governor and Californians simply cannot afford to have that happen. Sheriff Bianco offers a new way forward and the public polling proves that his campaign is resonating with voters,” Rick Gorka, a spokesperson for the Bianco campaign, told ABC News in a statement.
A still-unsettled race Others might still jump in on the right, like tech entrepreneur Jon Slavet, who filed FEC paperwork Friday and told ABC News he plans to launch his campaign early next month.
Maviglio characterized the race as “unsettled” and “a revolving door.”
Vice President Kamala Harris was mulling a bid following her defeat in last year’s presidential election, but she announced in July she was no longer considering running. And U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla — who strategists say might have cleared the field had he launched a bid — decided against a run earlier this month.
“We’ve had people say they’re running and exit out of the race. We’ve had people that were lured into thinking about running, like Padilla and Harris, and then opting not to. So it’s really hard to track,” Maviglio said.
Two politicians — California Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis and former president pro tempore of the California state Senate Toni Atkins — initially announced their candidacies, only to exit the race shortly thereafter.
Another rumored potential Democratic contender is billionaire Rick Caruso, who lost the 2022 Los Angeles mayoral race to Karen Bass. While Caruso has deep pockets and some name recognition, he was a Republican until 2019, which could alienate the progressive wing of his new party.
And while both Steyer and Caruso have the cash, strategists say they would have to use it wisely to mount successful campaigns.
“Self-funders do not do well here. It doesn’t mean they can’t, but they typically don’t,” Rodriguez said, pointing to the failed bids of Michael Huffington in the 1994 Senate race, Al Checchi in the 1998 gubernatorial election and Caruso in 2022.
Trouble for early front-runner Porter, the initial front-runner and only major female candidate in the field, seemed to have momentum after gaining backing from the progressive PAC EMILY’s List and several statewide labor unions. Cendejas acknowledged that Porter likely had an early advantage due to her name recognition and the fact that she is “beloved in a lot of progressive circles.”
“Katie is a fighter, a single mom of three, and a ruthless champion for working families who took on the Trump Administration and self-serving CEOs in Congress — and won,” Peter Opitz, a spokesperson for the Porter campaign, told ABC News in a statement.
But recent controversy surrounding Porter’s conduct has tightened her initial lead, indicating she may not be as strong of a candidate as was originally thought.
In a video that went viral online last month, Porter had a contentious interaction with a journalist, going so far as threatening to end the interview. Another video surfaced shortly thereafter showing Porter yelling at a staffer.
“What goes up must come down,” Cendejas said of Porter.
In her first appearance after the videos emerged, Porter apologized for the outbursts.
“I want people to know that I understand that what I did was not good,” Porter told an audience at the UC Student and Policy Center in Sacramento in October. “I’m not going to mince words about it, but I also want people to understand that I am in this fight because I am not going to back down and give one inch when people are hurting Californians. And both of those things can be true at the same time.”
Rodriguez expects that the ability for a candidate to successfully define themselves as someone who can lead California in going toe-to-toe with Trump will be “the whole thing.”
“I think Trump is going to be gigantic here,” Rodriguez added. “Everything is going to be Trump.”
