"Democrats have developed an uncanny skill for seizing defeat from the jaws of victory in recent years. That didn't happen, though, in the December 2 special election to fill a US House seat in Tennessee. While progressive Democrat Aftyn Behn fell short in her quest to flip a radically gerrymandered Republican district, she made up so much ground that smart Democrats have already begun to redo their calculations-and reconsider their strategies-regarding the midterm elections."
"If they reconsider those strategies boldly enough, they could seize a national victory in 2026 from the jaws of Behn's narrow defeat in 2025. By dramatically expanding the map of House and Senate races in which they invest resources, by recognizing the need not just to run against Donald Trump but to run for something, and by embracing the progressive economic policies that have boosted turnout for candidates as diverse as Behn and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani,"
"The stakes are so high-and the threats to democracy so real-that many progressives still refuse to allow themselves to hope. Yet the spirit of resistance is alive in the land. And it is growing in a manner that tells us that 2026 can and should be seen as a critical juncture for a country that can no longer accept the backward politics of Trump and his MAGA satraps."
Progressive Aftyn Behn narrowed the margin in a December Tennessee special election despite losing in a heavily gerrymandered Republican district. Her performance prompted Democrats to reassess midterm strategies and consider a bolder approach. Expanding resource investment across a wider map of House and Senate races can create new opportunities. Campaigns should emphasize positive, policy-oriented messages rather than solely opposing Donald Trump. Embracing progressive economic policies has increased turnout for diverse candidates. Successful recalibration could weaken Trump's MAGA movement and check corruption, economic plundering, cruelty, racism, xenophobia, and authoritarian overreach. The rising spirit of resistance frames 2026 as a critical political juncture.
Read at The Nation
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