Senior House Agriculture Committee member Jim Costa of California will challenge ailing ranking member David Scott of Georgia to become top Democrat, Costa told colleagues Wednesday.
Costa informed a group of fellow California Democrats of his plans to challenge Scott during a state delegation lunch, according to three people familiar with the matter who were granted anonymity to discuss the closed-door meeting. And he has invited some Democrats to a meeting Thursday to discuss the farm bill — which has been stalled in Congress for over a year.
CNN first reported Costa telling members he would mount a challenge to Scott.
Costa lost out to Scott in the contest for the top Agriculture post in 2020. Since then, a number of Democrats on the panel have made several unsuccessful attempts to oust Scott from his role, citing concerns about his health and lack of leadership on the committee. Democrats also pushed earlier this year to replace Scott as the top House Democrat in the negotiations over the $1.5 trillion farm bill.
