Downballot Counts

On this episode of Bloomberg Government's Downballot Counts, hosts Kyle Trygstad and Greg Giroux talk with a Republican redistricting consultant about the decennial battle between the two parties over the shape of the country's congressional districts.

On today's episode of Bloomberg Government's podcast, Downballot Counts, hosts Kyle Trygstad and Greg Giroux interview Jessica Taylor, a senior author of the 50th edition of the revered Almanac of American Politics. Taylor talks about being the first woman to hold this post and also analyzes the small number Senate races that could determine who controls Washington after next year.

In 2018, Liuba Grechen Shirley made waves when she successfully petitioned the Federal Election Commission to allow her to use campaign funds to pay for child care. The Long Island Democrat ultimately lost her race against then-Congressman Peter T. King, but now her full-time job is to make it easier for mothers to get elected across the country.

Shirley founded the Vote Mama Foundation and she speaks with podcast hosts Greg Giroux and Kyle Trygstad about the many obstacles that prevent working mothers from running for public office. Greg and Kyle also go over the most recent campaign finance disclosures and find that anti-Trump Republicans seem to be raking in the dough.

Last year's elections didn't go quite as well as Democrats had hoped, and one group of centrists in the party just issued a report looking at why. On this episode of Downballot Counts, hosts Kyle Trygstad and Greg Giroux speak with Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) about how he thinks his party should avoid losing its slim House majority next year. Also, Greg breaks down exactly what ranked-choice voting is and why it seems to be catching on.

Have feedback on this episode of Downballot Counts? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

On this episode of Downballot Counts, Kyle and Greg look at the political ramifications of redistricting and reapportionment, which will merge some congressional districts and force incumbents to battle each other to stay in power. Also, we hear from Tom Lopach, the CEO of the nonprofit nonpartisan Voter Participation Center, about recent legislation in the states to restrict voting access.

Nearly half a dozen Republicans Senators will not be seeking reelection next year, with more retirement announcements potentially on the way. On this episode of Downballot Counts, hosts Kyle Trygstad and Greg Giroux look at whether this is a good or bad thing for the Grand Old Party. And we also feature a special St. Patrick's Day-themed political trivia question. Erin go Bragh!

We're just a few months in to the 2022 election cycle and the dynamics at play are already starting to look fascinating. Democrats have two special election winners running for full terms in the Senate, while Republicans are dealing with at least three open Senate seats--and possibly more. Downballot Counts hosts Kyle Trygstad and Greg Giroux break down what we know so far and talk about why, at this moment, neither party appears to have the upper hand.

Downballot Counts hosts Kyle Trygstad and Greg Giroux break down the results from last week's Georgia Senate runoff elections. They say Democrats were victorious because turnout in these contests far exceeded anything previously seen in a runoff so soon after a general election.

Bloomberg Government's Emily Wilkins is in Georgia covering tomorrow's all-important Senate runoff elections. She talks with hosts Kyle Trygstad and Greg Giroux about how we got here, the similarities between Democrats' and Republicans' closing messages, and the challenges of holding campaign rallies during a pandemic.

Despite decades of work to educate more Black lawyers, the percentage of Black associates and partners in firms across the U.S. remain very low, and well below those of other professional careers. Big Law firms across the board are ramping up social justice efforts as the nation engages in a renewed dialogue on race and equality. But some have accused firms of using minorities as “diversity props” to impress clients and misrepresent their inclusiveness to potential employees. So what are law firms doing to fix their lack of diversity?

Hosts Adam Allington and Lisa Helem, along with reporters Ayanna Alexander, Ruiqi Chen, and Meghan Tribe, interviewed lawyers across the industry, from corporate general counsels to top Am Law 200 lawyers to current law students, each sharing their experience navigating the legal space as a person of color. We try to answer what law firms are doing to recruit more diverse classes of lawyers, and how they are addressing barriers to entry for Black lawyers.