Out of the blue, major Democratic players launched a bold new campaign to redraw Colorado’s congressional districts this week. On the latest episode of The Downballot podcast, co-hosts David Nir and David Beard explain why Democrats are taking their plan directly to voters, what kinds of changes it would make to the map, and what the political hurdles and legal pitfalls look like.

The Davids also discuss two Arizona Republicans who abandoned their campaigns for public office on back-to-back days last week, despite earning endorsements from Donald Trump—and why these twin dropouts show the growing limits of Trump’s influence on GOP primaries. Speaking of Trump, the hosts flag a special election coming up in his literal backyard: Next month, Democrats will have the chance to flip the Florida House district that includes none other than Mar-a-Lago.

After her weak win in 2022, Kathy Hochul’s political future looked dicey. Now, though, New York’s governor has a clear ride through the Democratic primary and looks to be in strong shape in the general election, too. On this week’s episode of The Downballot podcast, co-hosts David Nir and David Beard explore Hochul’s remarkable—and remarkably unexpected—bounceback, fueled by her eagerness to go head-to-head with Donald Trump.

The Davids also recap a string of recent elections, including progressive activist Analilia Mejia’s stunning upset in New Jersey, a big win for Louisiana Democrats on rural turf, and another massive overperformance by a Democrat in a deep-red district in Oklahoma.