Cheri Bustos selected as new chair of DCCC

Rep. Cheri Bustos was elected Thursday to lead the campaign arm of the House Democrats.

Mrs. Bustos of Illinois takes over the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee from Rep. Ben Ray Lujan who was elected as assistant majority leader a day earlier.

Mrs. Bustos is known as a moderate on Capitol Hill. She takes over the DCCC after it successfully helped flip the House in the midterm election, but also was left with $18 million in debt.

Mrs. Bustos defeated Reps. Suzan Delbene and Denny Heck, both of Washington. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, who has been battling a bacterial infection, was viewed as Mrs. Bustos’ stiffest competition before he dropped out of the race the night before the vote.