DNC panel pushes to scrap David Hogg's vice chair election
Could David Hogg's position as a vice chair of the DNC be in jeopardy?
A Democratic National Committee panel on Monday recommended redoing David Hogg and Malcolm Kenyatta's elections to party vice-chair, as Hogg faces a separate intraparty battle over his push to primary some Democratic politicians.
The DNC's credentials committee passed a resolution determining that Kenyatta and Hogg's election in February was incomplete due to violations of the party's charter, and the party should hold two new votes with only candidates who previously ran participating. The resolution will now be presented to the entire DNC.
Monday's resolution came in response to a challenge brought by Kalyn Free, a Native American committeeperson from Oklahoma who lost to Hogg — a 25-year-old Parkland school shooting survivor best known for his gun control advocacy — in one of the vice chair races. Free alleges that during February's election, the DNC improperly combined two questions and tallied votes together. In doing so, Free argues, the DNC used procedures that gave male candidates an advantage over female candidates, violating the party's charter.
During a more than two-hour meeting, committee members debated whether the election violated party rules. Representatives for Hogg and Kenyatta, a Pennsylvania state lawmaker, argued it's up to the DNC chair to interpret whether voting procedures are consistent with the rules. Kenyatta's representatives also argued holding a re-vote under new rules could "disenfranchise" party members who voted in February.
Before the vote, committee members rejected a resolution by Christine Pelosi, daughter of House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, to uphold Hogg and Kenyatta's elections.
DNC Chair Ken Martin, who was elected earlier this year, said in a statement he is "disappointed to learn that before I became Chair, there was a procedural error in the February Vice Chair Elections." He said he expects DNC members to "resolve this matter fairly."
David Hogg ignites DNC controversy
While Free's challenge is not related to the controversy surrounding Hogg, it still brought back to the fore Hogg's turbulent tenure as one of the party's top leaders — including an effort by Martin to require party officers like Hogg to remain neutral in primaries.
In reaction to Monday's vote, Hogg argued it's "impossible to ignore the broader context of my work to reform the party which loomed large over this vote."
"The DNC has pledged to remove me," wrote Hogg. "This vote has provided an avenue to fast track that effort."
Hogg has faced pushback over his efforts to mount primary challenges against Democrats he views as "asleep at the wheel" in the fight against President Trump. He says his group, known as Leaders We Deserve, plans to spend $20 million on the effort.
The gambit has drawn controversy from Democratic heavyweights who argue the party should remain neutral in primary elections and leaders should not focus their efforts on ousting elected members. Matt Bennett, a Bill Clinton campaign aide who now works for the centrist group Third Way, called it "insane behavior from a DNC official."
Martin has argued neutrality is necessary because it avoids the perception that "party insiders could quietly influence outcomes."
"Do I have opinions? Of course. But when you lead the institution tasked with calling the balls and strikes, you don't get to also swing the bat," Martin posted on X over the weekend.
Hogg has defended the Leaders We Deserve initiative, telling CBS News' Major Garrett last month "we have to show our base right now that we are doing everything we can to fight back against Donald Trump, and that includes holding ourselves accountable."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Axios
19 minutes ago
- Axios
Black Caucus chair says Trump's actions on L.A. are impeachable
Congressional Black Caucus chair Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) said Tuesday she believes President Trump mobilizing the National Guard and deploying Marines to Los Angeles rises to the level of an impeachable offense. Why it matters: It's a break with House Democrats' general aversion towards impeachment from the head of one of their most powerful groups. The comment comes amid growing animosity between Democrats and the Trump administration over the president's use of law enforcement to carry out a campaign of mass deportations. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Driving the news: During a press conference, Clarke was asked if Trump's actions to quell protests in L.A. rise to the level of an impeachable offense "I definitely believe it is," she responded, "But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Clarke and other Democrats have argued that Trump has violated the U.S. Constitution by mobilizing the National Guard over Newsom's objections. Reality check: Democrats are highly unlikely to pursue an organized impeachment effort against Trump any time soon. Two rank-and-file members, Reps. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) and Al Green (D-Texas), have spearheaded their own rogue impeachment initiatives, but most Democrats have dissociated themselves with those efforts. Most Democrats are clear-eyed that impeachment would be doomed to failure with Republicans in control of Congress — and they often note that Trump won in 2024 despite previously being impeached twice. What they're saying: House Democratic Caucus chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) told reporters at a subsequent press conference, "I've said before that ... House Democrats aren't focused on impeachment today."
Axios
19 minutes ago
- Axios
Impeachment wars
Rep. Jasmine Crockett's mere mention of a possible impeachment inquiry into President Trump has touched off negative reactions from some colleagues. "I think she's going to turn off a lot more people than gain," a House Democrat told us. Why it matters: House Democratic leaders are staying neutral. But many Democrats are allergic to the word after they impeached Trump twice only for him to return to power with full control of the government. Crockett (D-Texas), asked in a local news interview if she would pursue impeachment if Democrats retook the House in 2026 and she became Oversight Committee chair, said she would "absolutely at least do an inquiry." The other three candidates for the ranking member job on Oversight, Reps. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) and Kweisi Mfume (D-Md.), told us they wouldn't go that far. 👿 "Turning this ranker race into a proxy for impeachment is unhelpful and unfair to her colleagues," said a House Democrat who predicted Republicans will "try to motivate their base by saying that a Democratic majority will inevitably lead to impeachment." Crockett told us the term "impeachment inquiry" would stress to the public the "next level of gravity" of the subject matter — such as Trump's pardons for big money allies and the Qatari jet scandal. "A lot of times we as Democrats can overthink stuff," Crockett said. "A lot of people ... felt like [Oversight Committee chair] James Comer was an embarrassment. But at the end of the day, who won the House?" The bottom line: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries deferred to House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), whose panel, he said, "has jurisdiction over impeachment."
Fox News
22 minutes ago
- Fox News
NY lawmaker lambastes failed commemoration of Oct 7 attack, as Dem leadership accused of 'antisemitism'
The New York assemblyman behind an effort to formally commemorate the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack in Israel lambasted leadership for tanking what was supposed to be a "poignant" bill remembering the tragedy. Assemblyman Lester Chang, R-Brooklyn – one of the few GOP members from New York City in the 103-47 Democratic-majority chamber – said he had been working on a resolution for New York state to officially remember the terror attack since hostage negotiations began a year ago. "I'm a Navy veteran of 24 years and I did a tour in Afghanistan. So I understand what war is all about," said Chang. "I've seen atrocities out there." Once American figures like then-candidate Donald Trump began helping hostage negotiations, Chang said he directed his staff to craft a message – which he said took more than a month of back-and-forth to make sure it was "balanced" and did not have a partisan streak. "We submitted it in January, as a resolution, and it was rejected… because [leadership] said it was 'controversial,'" Chang said. "We were astounded but not surprised. So we converted it to a bill," he said, adding that, in the end, a bill would be better because a resolution only commemorates an event for that year, while a bill would codify the remembrance for eternity. With a handful of Democratic co-sponsors, Chang and colleagues believed they had the right balance to attempt to put it up for a vote, but as the New York Post reported, it was reportedly ultimately blocked by House Speaker Carl Heastie, D-Bronx, and other top Democrats. Chang said the bill, destined for the smaller governmental operations committee, was redirected to the larger Ways and Means committee, and that four members were "switched out." The top Republican on that panel, Assemblyman Ed Ra, told the New York Post that remembering Oct. 7 and/or combating antisemitism should never be "political." Republican Assemblyman Ari Brown, who, like Ra, represents Long Island, accused Albany Democrats of "veiled antisemitism," telling the Post the legislature is "rotten" with it. The assembly also tanked a resolution from Brown that complimented Chang's bill. Compounding that was, as Chang described, no GOP bills have been successfully put through the process at all this session. "Having me as a Republican [sponsor] – that would [procedurally] choke them – not because of me, the person, but as a member of that party." Chang said he would just as soon "give this bill to a Democrat" to sponsor if it meant commemorating the Oct. 7 attack. He added that, as a person of Chinese ancestry who represents largely Asian and Italian Bensonhurst, he has no religious horse in the race. "That should make it more poignant as a non-Jewish person pushing this bill in a mostly Christian and Buddhist district," he said. At least seven Democrats did come out in support of the Oct. 7 remembrance legislation, all of whom hail from New York City. Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt, R-Niagara Falls, echoed Chang's concerns in comments to Fox News Digital. "Many New Yorkers had loved ones injured or worse in the terror attacks in Israel on Oct. 7," Ortt said. "The least we can do is commemorate this tragic day." "Instead of taking commonsense action, Albany Democrats would rather play politics, and have time and again refused to defend our Jewish brothers and sisters." Fox News Digital reached out to Heastie for comment and response to the allegations but did not hear back.
