State attorneys general are one of the front lines of resistance against Donald Trump, and Democrats are prepared to invest in electing more of them. The Democratic Attorneys General Association is planning to spend $10 million to $15 million in 2018, trying to catch up with Republicans. There’s a lot of catching up to be done:
The hope, according to sources familiar with the effort, is to catch up to the Republican Attorneys General Association, which ramped up its legal and political work during the Obama years, notching major successes on both counts. RAGA put $23 million into races in the past two years, helping win and hold 29 of the country's attorneys general offices.
In addition to protecting incumbents, Democrats have identified top targets they want to capture — including in Ohio, Wisconsin and Nevada. And, banking on presumed Democratic-friendly trends in 2018, they’re eyeing other states that will be tougher to flip.
This is a hugely important role, with Democratic attorneys general already stepping up to fight Trump’s terrible policies:
Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, who is on the DAGA steering committee, has been speaking with recruits individually. She credits several whom she sees as strong candidates after the success she and her colleagues have had on the travel ban lawsuits and in bringing Trump to court on emoluments, education policy, environmental regulations and his proposed border wall.
“What we’ve seen since Trump’s election is the role of state AGs, and why it’s such an important seat,” Healey said, in an interview over the summer in her office in Boston. “That is really where a lot of the action’s been, and will continue to be.”
Who’s your state attorney general? Will the position be on your 2018 ballot? This is something to start focusing on now if your state might have a shot at electing someone good.