Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is the Democratic Hill committee

Hill committee

The Hill committees are the common name for the political party committees that work to elect members of their own party to United States Congress...

for the United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

, working to elect Democrats to that body. They play a critical role in recruiting candidates, raising funds, and organizing races in districts that are expected to yield politically notable or close elections. The structure of the committee consists, essentially, of the Chairperson (who according to current Democratic Caucus

Democratic Caucus of the United States House of Representatives

The House Democratic Caucus nominates and elects the Democratic Party leadership in the United States House of Representatives. The group is composed of all Democratic Representatives in the House...

rules is a fellow member of the Caucus appointed by the party leader in the House), their staff, and other Democratic members of Congress that serve in roles supporting the functions of the committee (candidate recruitment, fundraising

Campaign finance

Campaign finance refers to all funds that are raised and spent in order to promote candidates, parties or policies in some sort of electoral contest. In modern democracies such funds are not necessarily devoted to election campaigns. Issue campaigns in referendums, party activities and party...

, etc.).

The Chairperson of the DCCC is the fourth ranking position among House Democrats, after the Minority Leader, the Minority Whip and the Democratic Caucus Chairperson

Democratic Caucus Chairman of the United States House of Representatives

The following is a list of members of the U.S. House of Representatives who have served as chair of the House Democratic Caucus. Chairs are currently limited to two consecutive terms.-Source:*...

History

The DCCC was founded in 1866 as the Democratic National Congressional Committee.

Due to campaign finance reform

Campaign finance reform

Campaign finance reform is the common term for the political effort in the United States to change the involvement of money in politics, primarily in political campaigns....

legislation that took effect in the 2004 election cycle, the DCCC splits into two organizations a few months before each Election Day. One organization(the "Coordinated" campaign) can continue to stay in contact with the individual congressional campaigns, offering advice and suggestions to candidates and their staffs in each race. The other organization (the "Independent Expenditure" campaign), which makes independent expenditures in congressional districts on behalf of the campaigns, is not allowed to coordinate activities with the campaigns. In recent elections, the DCCC has played an expansive role in supporting Democratic candidates with independently produced TV ads and mail pieces.

The position of DCCC committee chair was assumed by Rahm Emanuel

Rahm Emanuel

Rahm Israel Emanuel is an American politician and the 55th and current Mayor of Chicago. He was formerly White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama...

after the death of the previous chair, Bob Matsui

Bob Matsui

Robert Takeo Matsui was an American politician from the state of California. Matsui was a member of the Democratic Party and served in the U.S...

at the end of the 2004 election cycle. Emanuel led the Democratic Party's effort to capture the majority in the House of Representatives in the 2006 elections

United States House elections, 2006

- House of Representatives prior to the election :As of November 7, 2006, the U.S. House of the 109th Congress was composed of 229 Republicans, 201 Democrats and 1 Independent . There were also four vacancies...

. After Emanuel's election as chairman of the Democratic Caucus

Democratic Caucus of the United States House of Representatives

The House Democratic Caucus nominates and elects the Democratic Party leadership in the United States House of Representatives. The group is composed of all Democratic Representatives in the House...

, Chris Van Hollen

Chris Van Hollen

Christopher "Chris" Van Hollen, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Democratic Party...

became committee chair for the 110th Congress, and thus for the 2008 elections

United States House elections, 2008

Infobox Election| election_name = United States House of Representatives elections, 2008| country = United States| type = legislative| ongoing = no...

. He continued through the 2010 elections. For the 2012 election cycle, Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi

Nancy Pelosi

Nancy Patricia D'Alesandro Pelosi is the Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives and served as the 60th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011...

appointed congressman Steve Israel

Steve Israel

Steve J. Israel is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2001. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district is located on Long Island and includes the towns of Huntington, Babylon, Islip, and Smithtown in Suffolk County, part of the town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, and the...

to serve as the committee's chair.

List of Chairs

Name	State	Term of Service
Patrick J. Kennedy Patrick J. Kennedy Patrick Joseph Kennedy II is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 1995 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes all of Bristol County and Newport County, and parts of Providence County. Kennedy did not seek re-election in 2010.A member of the Kennedy...	RI Rhode Island The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...	1999-2001
Nita Lowey Nita Lowey Nita Melnikoff Lowey is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1993. She is a member of the Democratic Party. She previously represented the 20th district from 1989 to 1993.-Early life, education and career:...	NY New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...	2001-2003
Bob Matsui Bob Matsui Robert Takeo Matsui was an American politician from the state of California. Matsui was a member of the Democratic Party and served in the U.S...	CA California California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...	2003-2005
Rahm Emanuel Rahm Emanuel Rahm Israel Emanuel is an American politician and the 55th and current Mayor of Chicago. He was formerly White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama...	IL Illinois Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...	2005-2007
Chris Van Hollen Chris Van Hollen Christopher "Chris" Van Hollen, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Democratic Party...	MD Maryland Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...	2007-2011
Steve Israel Steve Israel Steve J. Israel is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2001. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district is located on Long Island and includes the towns of Huntington, Babylon, Islip, and Smithtown in Suffolk County, part of the town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, and the...	NY New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...	2011-

History

List of Chairs

See also