Welcome to The Federal Tap

December 5, 2020

We are back with the latest news from the federal branch. Check out the top stories below or click the following button to read the full version.

Biden announces Yellen as pick for Treasury secretary

• Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) announced his appointees for top economic roles on Nov. 30, including the secretary of the Treasury and the Cabinet-rank positions of director of the Office of Management and Budget and chair of the Council of Economic Advisers.
   
• Biden named Janet Yellen, the 15th chair of the Federal Reserve and former chairwoman of the Council of Economic Advisers, for secretary of the Treasury. She has previously been confirmed by the Senate four times.
   
• Neera Tanden, president and CEO of the Center for American Progress, will be appointed director of the Office of Management and Budget. She has worked in both the Clinton and Obama administrations, including as a senior adviser for health reform at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
   
• Biden also appointed Cecilia Rouse, the dean of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, chairwoman of the Council of Economic Advisers.
   
• The Biden Transition also announced appointees for the following three roles:
  • Wally Adeyemo, deputy secretary of the Treasury
  • Jared Bernstein, member of the Council of Economic Advisers
  • Heather Boushey, member of the Council of Economic Advisers
     
• Biden announced appointees for seven senior White House communications roles on Nov. 29. Kate Bedingfield, who was a top communications adviser in the Obama administration and Biden presidential campaign, will serve as White House communications director. Former Obama White House Communications Director Jen Psaki will be White House press secretary. 
   
• The other five appointments include the following Biden campaign and Obama administration veterans:
  • Elizabeth Alexander, communications director for the first lady
  • Ashley Etienne, communications director for the vice president
  • Karine Jean-Pierre, principal deputy press secretary
  • Symone Sanders, senior advisor and chief spokesperson for the vice president
  • Pili Tobar, deputy White House communications director

Arizona special election winner Mark Kelly sworn in to U.S. Senate

• Mark Kelly (D) was sworn in to the U.S. Senate Wednesday, giving Democrats both of Arizona’s U.S. Senate seats for the first time since 1953.
   
• Kelly defeated incumbent Martha McSally (R) 51% to 49% in last month’s special election for the remaining two years of  John McCain’s (R) term. Because the race was a special election, Kelly was sworn in once results were certified rather than at the beginning of the new Congress in January.
   
• Arizona is one of three states where control of a U.S. Senate seat changed in this year’s elections. Democrats also picked up a seat in Colorado and Republicans gained one in Alabama. Control of both of Georgia’s U.S. Senate seats will be determined by a Jan. 5 runoff.

Six U.S. House races called for Republicans, two more remain too close to call

• Since our last update on Nov. 21, six more U.S. House races have been called, all for Republicans:
  • David Valadao (R) defeated incumbent TJ Cox (D) in California’s 21st Congressional District, leading Cox 50.4% to 49.6% as of Friday. Valadao earlier held this seat for three terms before losing his 2018 re-election bid to Cox, also 50.4% to 49.6%.
     
  • Young Kim (R) defeated incumbent Gil Cisneros (D) in California’s 39th Congressional District, leading Cisneros 50.6% to 49.4% as of Friday. Cisneros was first elected in 2018, when he defeated Kim 51.6% to 48.4%. Before Cisneros, Ed Royce (R) had represented the district since 1993.
     
  • The state Board of Canvass certified Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R) as the winner in Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District over Democrat Rita Hart (D) on Nov. 30. Hart announced on Dec. 2 that she would contest the election with the House Administration Committee. Certified vote totals showed Miller-Meeks with a six-vote lead out of nearly 400,000 votes cast, the narrowest margin of victory in any U.S. House election since 1984. The district had been represented by Dave Loebsack (D) since 2007.
     
  • Incumbent Lee Zeldin (R) defeated Nancy Goroff (D) in New York’s 1st Congressional District. As of Friday, Zeldin led Goroff 55.9% to 44.1%. Zeldin, who was first elected in 2014, won his last re-election bid 51.5% to 47.4%.
     
  • Andrew Garbarino (R) defeated Jackie Gordon (D) and Harry Burger (G) in New York’s 2nd Congressional District. As of Friday, Garbarino led Gordon 52.9% to 46.0%. Incumbent Peter King (R), who was first elected in 1992, did not seek re-election this year.
     
  • Nicole Malliotakis (R) defeated incumbent Max Rose (D) in New York’s 11th Congressional District. As of Friday, Malliotakis led Rose 57.8% to 42.0%. Rose was first elected in 2018, defeating incumbent Dan Donovan (R) 53.0% to 46.6%. Before Rose’s election, the district had been represented by a Republican since 2011.
     
• Democrats have so far won 222 U.S. House seats to Republicans’ 210. Two races remain too close to call and one, in Louisiana’s 5th Congressional District, is headed to a Dec. 5 general election. Two hundred and eighteen seats are needed for a U.S. House majority. Democrats had 232 seats to Republicans’ 197 heading into the election.
   
• Majority control of the U.S. Senate will be determined by two runoffs taking place on Jan. 5 in Georgia. Republicans have won 50 seats to Democrats’ 48. If Democrats win both runoffs, control of the chamber will be split 50-50 with Vice President Kamala Harris (D) holding the tie-breaking vote. If Republicans win one or both seats, they will retain their Senate majority. Heading into the election, Republicans had 53 seats while Democrats and independents caucusing with Democrats had 47.

Voter registration deadline is Dec. 7 for Georgia's Senate runoff elections

• Dec. 7 is the deadline to register to vote in Georgia's Jan. 5 runoff elections. Eligible voters may vote in the runoff even if they did not vote in the Nov. 3 general elections, as long as they are registered by the deadline.
   
• Georgia's regular and special Senate runoffs will determine control of the next U.S. Senate. Republicans have secured 50 seats and Democrats 48. If Democrats win both seats, they would have effective control of the chamber as Vice President-elect Kamala Harris (D) will have the tie-breaking vote. Republicans need to win at least one race to maintain their majority in the chamber.
   
• Incumbent David Perdue (R) and Jon Ossoff (D) are running in the regular election. Incumbent Kelly Loeffler (R) and Raphael Warnock (D) are running in the special election.
   
• Some news from this past week:
  • On Nov. 30, the Georgia Democratic Party, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and Ossoff and Warnock campaigns announced the leadership team for a coordinated runoff campaign focused on voter outreach and targeting.
     
  • On Dec. 2, SurveyUSA released a poll showing Ossoff and Perdue about even (50%-48%) and Warnock slightly leading Loeffler (52%-45%). The poll had a credibility interval of +/- 5.2 percentage points.
     
  • On Dec. 2, AdImpact reported that more than $300 million in ad time had been spent or reserved in the runoffs—$177 million by campaigns and groups supporting Republicans and $130 million by campaigns and groups supporting Democrats.
     
  • On Dec. 4, Vice President Mike Pence (R) headlined a rally in Savannah with Loeffler and Perdue. 
     
• And looking ahead:
  • President Donald Trump (R) will campaign at Valdosta Regional Airport with Loeffler, Perdue, and public service commissioner runoff candidate Lauren "Bubba" McDonald (R) Saturday at 7 p.m.
     
  • Warnock and Loeffler will debate at 7 p.m. on Dec. 6. Ossoff will appear alone at a debate at 5 p.m.; Perdue declined the invitation. 

Supreme Court hears oral arguments, to hear more next week

• The Supreme Court of the United States began its December sitting this week. The court is conducting oral arguments via teleconference and is providing live audio of the arguments on its website. The court made the decision in accordance with public health guidance in response to COVID-19.
   
• This week, the court heard a total of five hours of oral argument for six cases: 
  • November 30: Van Buren v. United States, Trump v. New York
     
  • December 1: Nestlé USA v. Doe I (Consolidated Cargill v. Doe I), CIC Services v. Internal Revenue Service
     
  • December 2: Edwards v. Vannoy
     
• The court will hear five hours of oral argument in six cases next week:
  • December 7: Republic of Hungary v. Simon, Federal Republic of Germany v. Philipp
     
  • December 8: Facebook v. Duguid, Henry Schein Inc. v. Archer and White Sales Inc.
     
  • December 9: Collins v. Mnuchin (Consolidated with Mnuchin v. Collins)

Wisconsin Supreme Court declines to take up Trump campaign lawsuit over alleged election law violations

• On Dec. 3, the Wisconsin state supreme court voted 4-3 against taking up a Trump campaign lawsuit, filed on Dec. 1. The lawsuit alleged more than 200,000 defective absentee/mail-in ballots were illegally counted. Justices Ann Walsh Bradley, Rebecca Dallet, Brian Hagedorn, and Jill Karofsky formed the majority. Chief Justice Patience Roggensack and Justices Annette Ziegler and Rebecca Bradley dissented. 
  • The court did not rule on the merits of the case, instead finding that the Trump campaign could not bypass the lower state courts and file its suit directly with the state supreme court.
     
  • To date, Ballotpedia has tracked 20 lawsuits disputing election outcomes that directly involve the Trump campaign. For more information, click here.

Members of Congress from Georgia, North Carolina test positive for COVID-19

• On Nov. 30, Rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.) announced he had tested positive for COVID-19.
   
• On Dec. 1, Rep. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) announced he had tested positive for COVID-19.   
   
• To date, Ballotpedia has identified 44 government officials and candidates at the federal level who have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Kwanza Hall wins runoff election to fill remainder of John Lewis' term in Georgia's 5th Congressional District

• Kwanza Hall (D) defeated Robert Franklin (D), 54% to 46%, in a special runoff election on Dec. 1 in Georgia's 5th Congressional District. Hall succeeds John Lewis (D), who died on July 17.
   
• Hall and Franklin were the top-two finishers in a field of seven candidates in a Sept. 29 special election. Nikema Williams (D)—who won the general election in the district on Nov. 3—did not run in the special election.
   
• Hall was sworn in to the U.S. House on Dec. 3 and will serve for 31 days—until the entire 117th Congress takes office on Jan. 3, 2021. Last cycle, Brenda Jones (D) served in the U.S. House from Nov. 29, 2018, to Jan. 3, 2019, after winning the special election in Michigan's 13th Congressional District to succeed John Conyers (D). Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D) won the 2018 Democratic primary in the district's regular election and succeeded Jones in January 2019.
   
• This was the last congressional special election held in 2020 to fill vacancies in the 116th Congress. Ten such elections were called and held since January 2019, eight for seats in the House and two in the Senate. 
   
• Forty-eight congressional special elections—an average of 12 every two years—have been held since the start of the 113th Congress in January 2013.