The Daily Kos Elections Morning Digest is compiled by David Nir, Jeff Singer, Stephen Wolf, Carolyn Fiddler, and Matt Booker, with additional contributions from David Jarman, Steve Singiser, Daniel Donner, James Lambert, David Beard, and Arjun Jaikumar.
Leading Off
●NY-Gov, NY-01: Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin, who'd been considering a gubernatorial bid for some time, kicked off a campaign for New York's top job on Thursday. But while Zeldin unleashed heaps of vitriol at Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo in his launch, it's far from clear that he'll get the chance to face the scandal-plagued incumbent, who has lost support from much of his party following allegations of repeated sexual misconduct. Should Cuomo be replaced with an untainted nominee, it's all but impossible to see how the extremely Trumpy Zeldin could win, so we wouldn't be surprised if he wound up running for re-election if Cuomo bails on a fourth term.
But Zeldin may fear he won't have a viable district to run in, which might be motivating his latest move, even if it looks quixotic—he wouldn't be the first Republican to fail upwards into a comfortable Fox News gig. New York is one of the few states where Democrats will control redistricting this cycle, and state lawmakers could craft a new map that makes Zeldin's 1st District, which trended to the left last year, much bluer.