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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed increasing assurance that his enactment volition regain power of the House successful November, arsenic helium visited 2 battleground districts successful caller days to assistance Democratic candidates unseat Republican incumbents.
Jeffries campaigned Friday successful New Jersey's competitory 7th Congressional District alongside Democratic challenger Rebecca Bennett, a Navy seasoned seeking to unseat Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. The pursuing day, helium traveled to Pennsylvania's 1st Congressional District to rally with Democrat Bob Harvie, a Bucks County commissioner challenging Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick.
The 2 districts are heavy suburban, reasonably affluent and politically divided — and they've caused heartburn for Democrats successful caller years. The mean Fitzpatrick has a agelong past of outrunning different Republicans and winning crossover enactment since helium was archetypal elected successful 2016. Control of Kean's spot has flipped doubly since 2018, but helium narrowly won a competitory reelection 2 years ago.
U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) attends a gathering with New Jersey Democratic Congressional campaigner Rebecca Bennett astatine Greater Mt. Moriah Baptist Church connected Oct. 9, 2026, successful Linden, New Jersey.
Kena Betancur / Getty Images
Democrats person invested successful some races this twelvemonth and presumption some of them arsenic highly competitive, arsenic they anticipation to instrumentality vantage of an unfavorable governmental situation for President Trump's party.
"We're moving done the decorativeness line. We instrumentality thing for granted, but we're connected the verge of taking backmost power of the House of Representatives," Jeffries told reporters pursuing Saturday's lawsuit successful Pennsylvania.
In a briefing with a tiny radical of governmental reporters Wednesday, Jeffries pointed to a fistful of districts successful Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York arsenic opportunities for Democrats. He besides said helium plans to sojourn 2 South Texas districts.
Republicans power the House by a single-digit margin, truthful the result of the midterms could beryllium decided by a reasonably tiny fig of races. Jeffries declined to foretell however galore seats his enactment could summation successful November.
"I'm precise assured that we're going to instrumentality backmost the majority, but it remains to beryllium seen what that looks similar successful presumption of the fig of seats that we prime up, which is going to beryllium connected the conditions that beryllium implicit the adjacent fewer weeks," helium said successful the briefing.
During the rally successful Bucks County, a perennial plaything region that supported Mr. Trump by a razor-thin borderline successful 2024 aft years of constrictive Democratic victories, Harvie said: "It is not an mishap that Hakeem Jeffries is present tonight."
"He knows what we're going to bash with this district. He knows the potential," helium said.
Fitzpatrick's run told CBS News that the Republican lawmaker "is alert of Hakeem's visit, helium inactive considers him a friend, and helium looks guardant to moving with him successful a bipartisan mode successful the 120th Congress."
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican from Pennsylvania, speaks during a quality league astatine the US Capitol successful Washington, D.C.
Tierney L. Cross / Bloomberg via Getty Images
"Leader Jeffries is doing what helium needs to do, and Brian wholly understands that," the campaign's connection continued.
Fitzpatrick, who is seeking a sixth term, has cultivated a mean representation and enactment region betwixt himself and Mr. Trump, voting with House Democrats to rescind tariffs connected Canada and restrict the Iran war. He besides voted against last transition of the Trump administration's signature "Big, Beautiful Bill" past year. Most recently, helium pushed backmost past week connected the president's program to bargain diesel from Russia.
Democrats person argued Fitzpatrick hasn't consistently opposed the president's agenda, pointing to an earlier ballot successful favour of the "Big, Beautiful Bill." Fitzpatrick has said helium voted against the last authorities aft the Senate added steeper Medicaid cuts.
Judi Reiss, a Democratic section elected authoritative successful Lower Makefield Township, Pennsylvania, told CBS News astatine Saturday's rally with Jeffries and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro that she has "no idiosyncratic animosity toward [Fitzpatrick] whatsoever, but helium hasn't done anything. He's been a rubber stamp for Donald Trump."
"He has not been independent, and it's precise disappointing," said Reiss, who sought the 2020 Democratic information for Fitzpatrick's spot but dropped retired earlier the primary.
Still, Fitzpatrick has survived connected challenging terrain successful the past — and overperformed different Republicans. Vice President Kamala Harris narrowly won his territory successful 2024, but Fitzpatrick won reelection the aforesaid twelvemonth by a much than 12-point margin.
The Cook Political Report rated the Pennsylvania district "Leans Republican" connected Friday, down from its erstwhile "Likely Republican" assessment.
Bucks County nonmigratory Bill Craig, a Republican who plans to ballot for Fitzpatrick, told CBS News helium believes Harvie has a "slim chance" of winning the district, but helium expects the contention to beryllium adjacent owed to dense Democratic turnout.
"Brian Fitzpatrick could cure crab close now, and they inactive wouldn't ballot for them," Craig said. "He's precise middle-of-the-road. They're trying to overgarment him arsenic immoderate benignant of MAGA psycho."
Jeffries visited Fitzpatrick's territory a time aft campaigning for Bennett crossed the Delaware River, successful a New Jersey spot that the Cook Political study sees arsenic Democratic-leaning — a displacement aft it called the contention a toss-up arsenic precocious arsenic past month.
The GOP incumbent there, Kean, is seeking a 3rd word representing a territory that stretches from the New York City suburbs to the Pennsylvania border, with Mr. Trump's Bedminster play nine sitting successful the middle. He was archetypal elected aft the territory was made somewhat redder successful 2022, and defeated Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski.
House Speaker Mike Johnson besides campaigned with Kean successful caller weeks.
Jeffries' run stops exemplify the value of suburban legislature districts that could assistance find which enactment controls the House adjacent year.
In past week's briefing with reporters, the Democratic person described each 4 competitory Republican-held districts successful Pennsylvania arsenic Democratic pickup opportunities. In summation to Fitzpatrick's seat, Democrats are targeting a northeastern Pennsylvania territory and 2 seats successful eastbound and cardinal Pennsylvania.
He besides singled retired the contention successful New York's 17th Congressional District, wherever Democrat Cait Conley is challenging Republican Rep. Mike Lawler.
Jeffries to run successful South Texas races
Meanwhile, Democrats are defending 2 competitory districts successful South Texas, and person signaled they program to spell connected discourtesy successful 2 GOP-held districts successful the region.
Republicans made important gains among Latinos successful 2024, particularly successful South Texas, wherever immoderate counties that were erstwhile Democratic strongholds became light-red.
Jeffries argued that Latino voters could plaything backmost to Democrats, pointing to concerns implicit the outgo of surviving and the Trump administration's assertive migration policies.
He said the governmental situation has changed dramatically successful the Rio Grande Valley, wherever Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez are seeking reelection.
U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, poses for a photograph astatine the Starr County Courthouse Annex Building connected Oct. 2, 2026, successful Rio Grande City, Texas.
Gabriel V. Cárdenas/For The Washington Post via Getty Images
Jeffries said helium besides plans to run successful the coming weeks for 2 Texas Democrats who anticipation to unseat Republicans. Tejano euphony prima Bobby Pulido is moving against Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz in a toss-up district, and Democrat Johnny Garcia is challenging Republican nominee Carlos De La Cruz successful a seat that's viewed arsenic redder.
The Democratic person besides rejected the conception that recently drawn Republican legislature maps successful Texas and Florida would present the important gains GOP strategists had initially anticipated.
"Under nary circumstances are Republicans winning 5 seats successful Texas oregon 4 seats successful Florida," Jeffries told CBS News past week.
The National Republican Congressional Committee has disputed Democrats' progressively optimistic assessments of the battleground map, pointing to Republican run resources and crushed crippled efforts successful competitory districts.
If Democrats regain power of the House, Jeffries would beryllium positioned to go the archetypal Black talker of the House successful American history.
While the enactment that doesn't power the White House astir ever performs good successful the midterms, the nonstop effect is tougher to predict. In the 2022 midterms, erstwhile Republicans were buoyed by erstwhile President Joe Biden's unpopularity, predictions of a sweeping GOP question failed to materialize. Republicans narrowly won power of the House but failed to recapture the Senate until 2 years later.
Asked by CBS News whether Democrats hazard that benignant of predetermination nighttime disappointment, Jeffries acknowledged the result volition beryllium connected the governmental clime and spending.
He said that portion the existent situation appears favorable to Democrats, the magnitude of wealth being spent by Republican-aligned governmental groups could yet bounds the fig of seats his enactment gains.
House Republicans' run committee had much currency connected hand than the group's Democratic counterpart astatine the extremity of August.
Jeffries disputed suggestions that Republicans clasp an overwhelming fiscal vantage successful House battlegrounds, arguing that Democrats are efficaciously astatine parity erstwhile spending by candidates, committees and extracurricular groups is considered together.
On the GOP side, Johnson is besides barnstorming frontline districts arsenic Republicans combat to support their bulk — and look for opportunities to unseat susceptible Democrats.
Johnson said the different time helium expects to sojourn astir 40 districts this month.
In caller days, Johnson has visited Michigan and Pennsylvania with incumbent Republicans, and campaigned alongside 2 Iowa Republicans who are aiming to clasp GOP-held districts: Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Joe Mitchell.
He besides campaigned past week successful Ohio with Derek Merrin, who is hoping to unseat longtime Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur successful a toss-up district. It's a rematch of 2024, erstwhile Merrin mislaid to Kaptur by around 2,400 votes.
During his sojourn to Ohio, Johnson said helium expects power of the House to beryllium determined by astatine slightest 22 seats that helium sees arsenic "jump-balls." He has expressed optimism that Republicans tin clasp their majority.
"This volition travel down to the result of astir 22 districts astir the country, and I judge we tin triumph those," Johnson told reporters precocious past month.
Mr. Trump has besides continued an assertive run docket aimed astatine boosting Republican candidates. Jeffries said helium welcomes his accrued involvement.
"The much Donald Trump campaigns for Republicans crossed the country, the amended for the accidental for Democrats to further person the American radical that we really are the lone ones determined to marque beingness much affordable for them," Jeffries said.
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