Welcome to the Friday, August 28, Brew. Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

1. Incumbent Neal, Morse compete for Democratic nomination in Massachusetts’ 1st District
2. Trump accepts Republican presidential nomination
3. Candidate Connection spotlight

Incumbent Neal, Morse compete for Democratic nomination in Massachusetts’ 1st District

Today, we look at a battleground primary in Massachusetts—the 1st Congressional District Democratic race between incumbent Richard Neal and challenger Alex Morse. Four states—Massachusetts (Sept. 1), New Hampshire (Sept. 8), Rhode Island (Sept. 8), and Delaware (Sept. 15)—have yet to hold 2020 congressional and statewide primaries. 

According to the Greenfield Recorder’s Dusty Christensen, “The 1st Congressional race has drawn national attention as an example of another primary battle between incumbents in positions of leadership in the Democratic Party and candidates running to their left to try to unseat them.”

Neal has been a member of the U.S. House since 1989 and Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee since 2019. On his campaign website, he points to his experience in Congress passing legislation related to taxes, supporting the Affordable Care Act and Social Security, and addressing climate change.

Alex Morse has been the Mayor of Holyoke since 2012. In an online interview he gave with the Daily Hampshire Gazette, he said his campaign priorities include expanding access to healthcare through the implementation of Medicare for all, addressing climate change through the Green New Deal, and making changes to criminal justice policy.

Neal has endorsements from House Majority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), the late Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), and Gov. Charlie Baker (R). Morse has endorsements from New York congressional candidate Jamaal Bowman (D), Justice Democrats, and the Sunrise Movement.

As of Aug. 12, Neal had raised $3.8 million and spent $4.3 million while Morse had raised $1.3 million and spent $1.0 million. 

The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, and Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball all rate the general election as Solid or Safe Democratic.

Learn more

       

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Trump accepts Republican presidential nomination 

President Donald Trump formally accepted the Republican presidential nomination on Aug. 27 and concluded his party’s national convention. Trump gave his acceptance speech from the White House lawn. The convention was originally scheduled to take place in Charlotte, North Carolina, but statewide restrictions in response to the coronavirus pandemic limited the number of RNC events held there. 

Now that both major party candidates have been formally nominated, what's next? As has been the case in every presidential general election since 2000, there will be three debates between the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees and one debate between the Democratic and Republican vice-presidential nominees, as detailed in the schedule below.

The first presidential debate—which is 32 days away—will run for 90 minutes without commercial breaks. There will be one moderator, which the Commission on Presidential Debates will announce in September. Audience and media attendance will depend on the severity of the coronavirus. 

Candidate Connection spotlight

On Fridays, we’ve been highlighting responses to Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection survey. The survey is designed to ask candidates what they care about, what they stand for, and what they hope to achieve. We designed it to try to help voters learn more about candidates as people and we ask all candidates with a Ballotpedia profile to complete it. 

One thousand, seven hundred, and nineteen candidates have answered this week’s question: “What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?” Here are some select responses:

"One of the very first events I remember is Apollo 11 and the broadcast of the first steps on the moon. I was a young boy glued to the TV. Like almost every child, I wanted to grow up to be an astronaut. I have been fascinated with the space program ever since. I was able to partially live out my dream when I joined the U.S. Air Force. I was assigned to the space shuttle program and was responsible for a critical launchpad system."

-Todd DiFede, Republican candidate running for Maine House of Representatives, District 8

“The first historical even[t] that I remember happening in my life was the terrorist attacks on September 11th. I was 8 years old at the time. I remember coming in from recess and watching the news the rest of the school day. I remember being unsure of what was going to happen next. How long will it take us to recover?

I also remember that our country felt very unified in the aftermath of September 11th. I believe that we can unify in the same way in our response to COVID-19. We can work together to recover and unite to make sure that we all have access to the resources we need. In times of uncertainty, America always steps up to the plate. I look forward to meeting the challenge ahead of us and I know that we can come out on the other side of this stronger, together.’ 

-Dylan McHenry, Democratic candidate running for Indiana House of Representatives, District 30

"I remember the fall of the Berlin Wall. I was just a young child but it left a profound impact on me. I could not understand why anyone would want to build a wall to restrict people from their families." 

-Elliott Scheirman, Libertarian candidate running for Texas' 2nd Congressional District

Last week, we highlighted answers to the question, "Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?” The week before, we spotlighted the question, “If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?” 

If you know of a candidate who hasn’t yet responded to our survey, send them this link and ask them to complete it. We’d all love to learn more about them!  

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