Raskin launches challenge to Nadler for top Democratic spot on Judiciary panel
Rep. Jamie Raskin (Md.) launched a bid to be the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee on Monday, challenging Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) for the post on the powerful panel.
The announcement from Raskin, which had been the subject of speculation for weeks, sets the stage for a high-stakes clash between two House Democrats for the ranking member role on one of the most powerful committees on Capitol Hill.
The panel — which oftentimes finds itself at the center of controversy in Washington — has jurisdiction over federal courts and law enforcement, among other areas.
Raskin — who is currently the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee — announced his candidacy in a letter to colleagues.
“After a week consulting most of our Colleagues and engaging in serious introspection about where we are, I am running today to be your Ranking Member on the House Judiciary Committee in the 119th Congress,” Raskin wrote. “This is where we will wage our front-line defense of the freedoms and rights of the people, the integrity of the Department of Justice and the FBI, and the security of our most precious birthright possessions: the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the rule of law, and democracy itself.”
Nadler — who was the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee for part of the first Trump administration — announced his intent to remain atop the panel in a letter to colleagues last month, highlighting his history of leading efforts against President-elect Trump.
But several outlets reported in recent weeks that some Democrats were pushing Raskin to jump into the race, seeing the Maryland Democrat — who is 16 years younger than Nadler — as better suited to lead the panel during a second Trump administration.
According to The New York Times, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was one of those urging Raskin to run.
Raskin lauded Nadler in his letter announcing his candidacy, writing that, if elected ranking member, he would consult the New York Democrat throughout his tenure in the top job. Thereafter, however, he referenced “New generations of Democratic leaders in the House.”
“I take this step with respect and boundless admiration for my friend Jerry Nadler and his remarkable half-century of service in public office in New York and Congress,” Raskin said. “His career is a model of commitment to our shared Democratic vision of government as an instrument for the common good.”
“If I’m lucky enough to be chosen for this responsibility in the 119th Congress, I will turn to Jerry first and throughout for his always wise counsel and political judgment,” he added. “New generations of Democratic leaders in the House will look to him — just as we look every day to our great leaders Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer and Jim Clyburn — as we take the fight to Jim Jordan and an emboldened MAGA movement.”
Raskin’s bid is the latest iteration of younger Democrats challenging elder lawmakers for top committee posts. Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), for example, announced a bid against Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) to be ranking member of the Natural Resources Committee. Grijalva on Monday said he would drop out of that contest.
Reps. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) and Jim Costa (D-Calif.) are similarly running against Rep. David Scott (D-Ga.) to be the top Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee.
Raskin, a former constitutional law professor who first came to Congress in 2017, has seen his star rise in the House Democratic Caucus in recent years, emerging as a prominent lawmaker for his efforts against Trump. The Maryland Democrat was an impeachment manager during Trump’s second impeachment, following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, and he later served on the select committee investigating the riot.
House Democrats elected Raskin to serve as ranking member of the Oversight Committee in December 2022, choosing him over Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.).
“In the 119th Congress, the Judiciary Committee will be the headquarters of Congressional opposition to authoritarianism and MAGA’s campaign to dismantle our Constitutional system and the rule of law as we know it,” Raskin wrote in his letter. “I hope to be at the center of this fight and—as someone who has battled cancer and chemotherapy—I can tell you that I will never, never surrender.”
Nadler, meanwhile, is a more than three-decade veteran in the House who has been the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee since 2017 and was an impeachment manager during Trump’s first impeachment. The New York Democrat called on that experience in making his case to continue leading Democrats on the panel.
“As a New Yorker, I have stood up to Donald Trump my entire career,” Nadler said. “Prior to his entering politics, I worked to prevent him from abusing taxpayer dollars to line his own pockets. When he became President, I led the Judiciary Committee’s efforts to hold him accountable for his various abuses of power, culminating in two historic impeachments.”
“I understand his playbook,” he added. “I am well prepared to help thwart his plans to be a “Dictator on Day One.”
The House Democrats’ Steering and Policy Committee is expected to vote on a recommendation for the ranking member position. The entire caucus will then vote on who should assume the top Democratic post.
A Raskin victory in the Judiciary ranking member race would set off a battle over which Democrat would lead the Oversight Committee, another high-profile panel that is oftentimes pulled into the spotlight.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who is currently the vice ranking member on the panel, could vie for the top Democratic job, in addition to Connolly, who lost to Raskin in 2022.
This story was updated at 3:00 p.m.
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