Senate map and surprising competitiveness

Excitement has been building among some Democrats after the party won a special election in Florida last week in a district that includes Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach. This win, along with several others recently, suggests the party may have the momentum heading into November’s midterm elections, when they’ll be looking to reclaim control of the House, and possibly even the Senate. Despite the optimism, some Democrats are cautious about the party’s progress as frustration builds over internal divisions within the party.

In today’s episode, Justin and Sumi sit down with key Democratic advisor Jim Messina, who was deputy chief of staff to Barack Obama and the mastermind behind his successful 2012 presidential campaign. He gives his thoughts on how the party needs to approach the midterm elections and the main contenders to take over leadership of the party.

HOSTS: * Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter * Sumi Somaskanda, BBC chief presenter

GUEST: * Jim Messina, former deputy chief of staff to Barack Obama

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This episode was made by Emma Close with Alix Pickles and led by George Dabby. The technical producer was Mike Regaard. The series producer is Purvee Pattni. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.

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