MONEY MOVES — Adelson, a GOP mega donor, is preparing for the 2022 and 2024 political cycles, after the death of her husband Sheldon Adelson, a casino mogul and longtime GOP kingmaker, POLITICO's Alex Isenstadt wrote. Adelson "quietly held meetings in her Las Vegas home with a select group of GOP leaders and potential 2024 presidential candidates in the last few days." Among those who have met with Adelson: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and NRSC Chair Rick Scott. GETTING IN — Pennsylvania Republican Dave White launched a campaign for governor, and GOP state Sen. Doug Mastriano opened an exploratory committee for the same office, The Philadelphia Inquirer's Andrew Seidman reported. White has already put $2 million into his campaign. Meanwhile, Republican state Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman is expected to launch a bid for governor on Thursday. INFRASTRUCTURE WEEK — The House sent a $550 billion infrastructure bill to Biden's desk on Friday, after months of tense negotiations over the legislation, POLITICO's Nicholas Wu reported. Democrats were eager to pass a bill they can campaign on in the 2022 midterms. The 13 Republicans who voted for the bill included three retirees: Reps. Anthony Gonzalez (R-Ohio), Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and Tom Reed (R-N.Y.). Four GOP 'yes' votes came from New York: Reps. Andrew Garbarino, John Katko, Nicole Malliotakis and Reed. And of the 10 Republicans who voted for Trump's impeachment, four voted for the infrastructure bill. Of the Democrats who voted no, all six are progressives who were first elected in 2018 or 2020. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Cori Bush (D-Mo.) and Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.). MIDTERM MESSAGING — Democrats are conducting focus groups and trying to figure out what went wrong in last week's election. But some in the party don't seem optimistic that they'll right the ship after losses in Virginia and New Jersey, POLITICO's David Siders reported. "Democrats lost the culture wars, but they also got pinned down on the economy. They were drubbed in rural areas and with non-college educated whites, but they also lost independents in the suburbs. And two issues that worked so well for Democrats last year — the coronavirus and Donald Trump — no longer resonated as much with voters," David wrote. FIRST IN SCORE: I'M JUST A BILL — A coalition of 50 good government and liberal groups are sending a letter to members of Congress a year from the midterms, warning them of potential threats to democracy, Zach writes in. "Our democracy faces an existential threat—the very real possibility that the outcome of an election could be ignored and the will of the people overturned by hyperpartisan actors," the organizations, including Public Citizen, MoveOn, and Protect Democracy, write. They urge Congress to pass the Freedom to Vote Act, Democrats' voting rights legislation that is stalled in the Senate. NOTABLE FLOATABLES — New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu will decide whether to challenge Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) in the next week, Fox News' Paul Steinhauser and Robert Sherman reported. "I'll probably come to some decision in the next week or so. Maybe sooner," Sununu said during his visit to the Republican Jewish Coalition's annual leadership summit in Las Vegas. POLL POSITION — Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott leads former Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) in a hypothetical gubernatorial match-up, according to a poll from the University of Texas at Austin and The Texas Tribune. Abbott had 46 percent of support, and O'Rourke had 37 percent, the Texas Tribune's Patrick Svitek wrote. Abbott's approval has improved in recent months but remains at 43 percent. Only 35 percent of voters have a favorable view of O'Rourke. The poll surveyed 1,200 voters from Oct. 22-31. OLD DOMINION — Republicans won control of the Virginia state House of Delegates, POLITICO's Liz Crampton wrote. The victory was made official several days after the Nov. 2 election, after late-arriving mail-in ballots were counted. Democrats flipped the chamber in 2019. THE SILVER STATE — The power struggle among Nevada Democrats could ruin the party's chances of winning in 2022, POLITICO's Holly Otterbein reported. Earlier this year, Democratic socialists took over the state Democratic Party, leading the state political machine to splinter from the official party. Democrats Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Gov. Steve Sisolak, supported by a coordinated campaign separate from the state party apparatus, are now without crucial voter data. Biden won Nevada by 2 points last year. THE SUNSHINE STATE — The FL-20 recount to replace the late Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) is underway, POLITICO Florida's Gary Fineout wrote. South Florida health care CEO Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick led Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness in the Democratic primary by five votes after officials in Broward and Palm Beach counties conducted an automatic machine recount followed by a hand recount of some ballots. Ballots that were postmarked by Election Day and arrive by Sept. 12 will be counted, and could sway the outcome. THE MAP LINES — With the support of the liberal National Redistricting Foundation, a group of North Carolina voters are suing over the state's new congressional map, claiming the new boundaries are "a partisan gerrymander in violation of the Free Elections, Equal Protection, Freedom of Speech, and Freedom of Assembly Clauses of the North Carolina Constitution." — Michigan's independent redistricting commission narrowed its congressional proposals down to three maps. "The maps make a serious dent in the GOP advantage baked into the current lines, but would still lean Republican by some measures. One measure shows the maps would slightly favor Democrats and predicts a 7-6 edge for the party in the state's congressional delegation," the Detroit Free Press' Clara Hendrickson reported. — Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan formally accepted draft political maps drawn by his redistricting commission, but the maps aren't likely to go far, Maryland Matters' Bruce DePuyt reported. Hogan plans to introduce the maps when lawmakers convene for a special session Dec. 6. Democratic state lawmakers have their own redistricting commission and have been working on separate maps. THE GARDEN STATE — New Jersey state Senate president Steve Sweeney's loss was part of a "tsunami that took place at the end that nobody saw coming," according to Democratic powerbroker George Norcross. Sweeney, a Democrat and the second-most powerful politician in the state, lost to Republican Edward Durr, who spent little on his campaign and has never held office, The Philadelphia Inquirer's Allison Steele, Andrew Seidman, and Jonathan Tamari wrote. Norcross said he hopes Sweeney runs for governor in four years. THE GRAND CANYON STATE — Arizona Republican Blake Masters will get a fundraising boost from Trump, POLITICO's Natalie Allison wrote. Trump has not endorsed in the Senate primary, but he is scheduled to attend a Masters fundraiser at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach. State Attorney General Mark Brnovich is also running in the GOP primary for a chance to take on Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.). — Youngkin's victory in Virginia is stoking questions about Arizona GOP Gov. Doug Ducey, the Arizona Republic's Stacey Barchenger wrote. Ducey, who is term-limited, won reelection in 2018 by focusing on a similar message as Youngkin: the economy, jobs and education. The governor has not said whether he will run for another office. Ducey has faced criticism over his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, and from Trump supporters when he certified the 2020 election results. THE PROCESS — Wisconsin state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos must turn over records related to a secret 2020 election review led by Republicans, a judge ordered on Friday. The review is being led by former state Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Patrick Marley reported. The liberal group American Oversight requested records related to the taxpayer-funded investigation, but Vos did not produce all the records.
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