Schrader has often angered party progressives during his seven terms in the House. But it wasn’t until the state redistricting process produced a new map last year, which significantly altered the boundaries of his 5th Congressional District, that the conditions for a serious primary challenge first emerged.
The race has attracted a barrage of outside spending, with more than $2 million alone coming from a pair of super PACs backing Schrader’s reelection bid. Schrader also has the support of President Joe Biden, who made the incumbent his first endorsement of the cycle, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the party’s House campaign arm. McLeod-Skinner has received a relatively modest boost from progressive outside groups, led by the Working Families Party.
But, in a more ominous development for Schrader, she has also been endorsed by four Democratic county chapters across the new district.
Three of the local parties took the unusual step of publicly demanding the…
