WASHINGTON, D.C. – The push by Minnesota congresswoman Angie Craig to lead her party on the House Agriculture Committee remains a toss-up, though members say she’s a strong contender, say fellow Democrats.
“I think it’s a lot closer than people think,” said Rep. Jill Tokuda of Hawaii. “Part of me wonders if this might slip down to geographic divides.”
On Tuesday evening at the Capitol, a number of members on House Agriculture exiting the chamber spoke to the Minnesota Star Tribune about the 52-year-old [Craig’s campaign](https://www.startribune.com/angie-craig-aims-to-be-top-dem-on-influential-agriculture-committee/601186519) to oust 79-year-old George Rep. David Scott, who has missed votes due to health issues.
Democrats are slated to vote next week on the ranking member. Craig’s name is among three circulating, including the current ranking member, Scott, and longtime California Democrat Jim Costa. But days out from the election, members were mixed on their plans.
“I’m definitely weighing all the options,” Tokuda said when asked which candidate she’s leaning toward. “I’ve been very impressed with Angie. Her comments and the kind of leadership and style she wants to bring to the table and I think the fact that she is doggedly reaching out to folks and not just talking about what she wants to do, but also listening to what people want to see.”
Craig, who wasn’t available for an interview for this story, framed her pitch in a letter to colleagues last month as a return to rural values for a party that lost the presidency and control of the U.S. Senate in November.
“Right now, I worry that too many rural Americans don’t trust that Democrats have their best interests at heart,” Craig wrote. “It’s my mission to work with you to help change their minds.”
Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas said the [looming farm bill](https://www.startribune.com/minnesotans-sweating-in-farm-country-as-the-farm-bill-dies-again/601154609) — the twice-a-decade legislation funding a range of things from childhood nutrition to crop insurance — ups the stakes for the committee’s future Democratic leader.