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In today's issue:

▪ 2025’s marquee debates

▪ Redistricting battle in court

▪ Thune offers Dems vote on ObamaCare subsidies

▪ Trump authorizes CIA action in Venezuela

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Two of the biggest political debates of the year will be held Thursday night back-to-back, a high-stakes test that could shape the final weeks of the election.

In Virginia, Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones is scrambling to get his campaign back on track as he’s set to face incumbent state Attorney General Jason Miyares (R).

New York City mayoral front-runner Zohran Mamdani will be the center of attacks on two sides Thursday when he faces off against former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who’s running as an independent, and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa.

The Virginia debate will begin at 6 p.m., while the New York City faceoff will start at 7 p.m.

Jones’s campaign is still reeling from leaked text messages he sent in 2022 in which he said he hoped for violence against then-state House Speaker Todd Gilbert (R) and his family.

The Democratic candidate has apologized for sending the texts and said he wishes he could take them back, but he’s rebuffed calls from Republicans to exit the race.

Thursday’s debate, the only face-to-face between the candidates, will be perhaps Jones's best opportunity to address the controversy and try to prove to voters he deserves to become Virginia’s top law enforcement official.

Former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, and Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, the Republican nominee, already faced off in their lone debate last week. The second and final debate of New Jersey’s gubernatorial race between Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D) and Jack Ciattarelli (R) also took place last week.

The attorney general contest already was viewed as the closest of Virginia’s three statewide races this year, but it’s tightened even more since the texts came out. Jones and Miyares are tied at 46.4 percent support each in the Decision Desk HQ polling average.

▪ The Hill: Leaked texts put spotlight on Virginia attorney general debate.

▪ Virginia Mercury: Jones texting scandal tests Spanberger’s ticket.

▪ WTOP: Will text message scandal derail Democrats in Virginia?

Zooming north, while Mamdani is heavily favored in New York City's mayoral race after defeating Cuomo and other rivals in the Democratic primary earlier this year, that doesn’t mean he’s locked up victory.

Polling has consistently shown Mamdani with a double-digit lead in the general election race but with less than majority support, suggesting a possible opening for another candidate. Those opposed to Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, have expressed concerns the anti-Mamdani vote will be split among multiple candidates, allowing him to win.

Some steps to coalesce the opposition have been successful, as incumbent Mayor Eric Adams and independent Jim Walden both have dropped out of the race, acknowledging the long odds they faced. But Sliwa has steadfastly resisted dropping out to help boost Cuomo, who has regularly polled in second place.

Still, the debate will be a key test for whether candidates can appeal to the constituencies they need to ensure victory.

For Mamdani, that’s voters who regularly vote Democratic but have been hesitant to vote for him, expressing concern that he’s too far left. If Mamdani were to win the race but with less than a majority, he’d be the first mayor of the city to do so in nearly 50 years.

For Cuomo, it’s voters who previously made up a key part of Adams’s coalition who are now up for grabs. Both appeal to similar types of voters — moderates, older voters, Black and Latino voters who are more concerned about crime — presenting Cuomo with a clear opportunity.

But he needs to win over an overwhelming majority of these voters even to have a chance at pulling off an upset against Mamdani.

The Hill’s Caroline Vakil has five things to watch going into the debate.

MAMDANI'S MESSAGE TO TRUMP: Mamdani directly addressed President Trump during an interview on Fox News on Wednesday night, pledging he would be different than incumbent mayor Adams.

Mamdani said while speaking with Martha MacCallum that unlike Adams, he wouldn't call to "figure out how to stay out of jail," and unlike Cuomo, he wouldn't call to ask "how to win this election."

"I will, however, be a mayor who is ready to speak at any time to lower the cost of living. That's the way that I am going to lead this city," Mamdani said. "That's the partnership I want to build not only with Washington, D.C., but with anyone across this country."

Mamdani also weighed in on several key national and local issues, including the recent ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. He said now is "too early" to give Trump credit on the deal, but credit would be due if it proves "durable."

He also apologized to the New York Police Department for past comments he made calling them "racist," "wicked" and "corrupt."

In the aftermath of George Floyd's murder in 2020, Mamdani made several posts on the social platform X criticizing the local police and calling for them to be defunded. He's said that he no longer supports defunding the police.

“And I apologize because of the fact that I’m looking to work with these officers. And I know that these officers, these men and women who serve in the NYPD, they put their lives on the line every single day," Mamdani said.

Mamdani has said he's previously apologized to individual police officers but hadn't yet issued a full public apology to the department as a whole.

▪ Politico: Mamdani needs a mistake-free debate night against Cuomo.

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