“Together, we will rebuild from the ground up outside of Washington — and give voters a more representative government,” Eric Holder said. | Getty Holder, Pelosi, McAuliffe start redistricting fundraising

Before they get to redistricting reform, they’ll need cash.

Democrats leading the party’s new effort to coordinate political and legal resources to redraw state legislatures’ and House of Representatives’ maps will kick off the first phase of fundraising next weekend, heading to San Francisco on Saturday and Los Angeles on Sunday to make their case to some of California’s biggest donors.


Former Attorney General Eric Holder — who’s chairing the National Democratic Redistricting Committee — will be joined by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe.

“Together, we will rebuild from the ground up outside of Washington — and give voters a more representative government,” Holder said.

One person who won’t be joining them: former President Barack Obama, who’s committed to the group but is so far remaining out of direct political activity as he continues setting up his foundation. Obama is expected to do fundraising for the group eventually, though no events have been scheduled. In the meantime, in private conversations, he’s been pointing donors and others asking him how to get involved to the NDRC.

The NDRC plans to target select statehouse races in key states, raising Democratic attention around them and consolidating outside groups’ spending and work in the hopes of flipping seats to combat the Republican advantage in setting maps after the next census. They’re also getting active in governors’ races, and prospecting for new lawsuits that could challenge existing maps.

“The American people deserve confidence in their democracy,” Pelosi said, calling the NDRC an “important effort to undo Republican gerrymandering and build a fairer map for the decade to come.”

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More joint events for Holder, Pelosi and McAuliffe are being scheduled in New York, Washington, Chicago and Boston, according to people familiar with the planning.

“We'll be crisscrossing the country meeting with supporters and ensuring that the NDRC can help lead the effort to win critical governors races in 2017 and 2018,” McAuliffe said, “and give Democrats a seat at the table in the 2021 redistricting process.”