Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.

* Looking ahead to the fall’s midterm elections, the latest national CNN poll found Democrats leading Republicans on the generic congressional ballot, 46% to 41%, but among Americans who say they’re deeply motivated to vote, that advantage expands to 16 points.

* Rep. Julia Letlow hasn’t yet said whether she intends to take on Sen. Bill Cassidy in a Republican primary in Louisiana, but on Saturday, Donald Trump encouraged the congresswoman to run against the incumbent senator and endorsed her prospective candidacy.

* Speaking of the president, it’s been more than a month since Republican state senators in Indiana rejected a White House redistricting gambit, and Trump is apparently still upset about it: Over the weekend, he said online that he’d met with the Club for Growth’s David McIntosh and discussed plans to “take out” Indiana Senate Majority Leader Rod Bray. “We’re after you Bray, like no one has ever come after you before!” the president concluded.

* And speaking of redistricting efforts, state lawmakers in Virginia have advanced a constitutional amendment that will allow the Democratic-led legislature to redraw the commonwealth’s district lines. As The New York Times noted, “If voters in Virginia approve the amendment in a referendum planned for this spring, Democrats could be in position to gain as many as four more seats in the House.”

* California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced late last week that the special election to fill the vacancy left by the late Republican Rep. Doug LaMalfa will be held on Aug. 4. That’s notable for a reason: While GOP leaders would love to fill the vacancy quickly, the Democratic governor chose the latest date possible under state law. 

* It’s not yet clear which states will go first when Democratic voters choose their 2028 presidential nominee, but 12 states are vying for the earliest possible slots.

* And in Texas, with just two months remaining before a closely watched Republican Senate primary, state Attorney General Ken Paxton’s campaign released an AI-generated video showing his principal rival, incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, dancing with Rep. Jasmine Crockett, one of the Democratic contenders. The video was promoted online, but it will not be aired via broadcast media.

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