WASHINGTON – Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., a former constitutional law professor who served as the Democratic attorney general in Trump’s impeachment trial after the Jan. 6 attack, told colleagues Monday that he will challenge Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y. ., for the top Democratic seat on the powerful Judiciary Committee.
Nadler, 77, has held the top job on the Judiciary panel since 2019, has served in Congress since 1992 and has suffered some health scares in recent years. Although Raskin is 61, her bold challenge to Nadler is another example of a new generation of Democratic stars embracing the old guard — and the party’s seniority system — in the wake of disappointing losses for the party in the 2024 election.
“In the 119th Congress, the Judiciary Committee will be the headquarters for Congressional opposition to authoritarianism and MAGA’s campaign to destroy our constitutional system and the rule of law as we know it,” said Raskin, a cancer survivor who also served on a special House committee. In a letter to colleagues on Monday, investigating the January 6 attack.
“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, ever give up,” she said.
In a three-page letter, Raskin, the current ranking member of the Oversight Committee, also praised Nadler, who is running for a fourth term as the Democratic leader of the Judiciary panel.
“Finally, I must say that I take this step with respect and immense admiration for my friend Jerry Nadler and his remarkable half-century of public service in New York and in Congress. … If I am fortunate enough to be elected to this responsibility in the 119th Congress,” Raskin wrote, “I will always look first to Jerry for his wise counsel and political judgment.”
Raskin, who was first elected to the House in 2016, isn’t the only Democrat to announce a challenge to the longtime committee chair this year. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., said in a letter Monday to colleagues that it’s time to “pass the torch” as the lead Democrat on the Natural Resources Committee. After Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., announced he would challenge for the 76-year-old job.
Grijalva, who has served in Congress since 2003, has been unable to vote for several months after announcing his cancer diagnosis in April. Huffman, 60, was first elected to Congress in 2012.
The battle for the top position on the Agriculture Committee is also ongoing, with U.S. Rep. Jim Costa, D-Calif., and Angie Craig, D-Minn., battling to unseat longtime Rep. David Scott, D-Ga. He is 79 years old and has been struggling with health problems for years.
Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, DN.Y. The Democratic Leadership and Policy Committee, which is closely related to the Democratic Leadership and Policy Committee, is expected to make recommendations to the full Democratic Caucus next week on which members should serve as top Democrats on each committee in the next Congress. . After that, the caucus will hold a final vote.