Democrats chart path after strong midterms as debate over MAGA's future continues
Summary
- Democrats outperformed expectations in the 2026 midterms, with what was reported as their best electoral performance since Watergate.
- Democrats gathered in Denver on November 12 and 13 for a two-day "What's Next" conference on how to use their new power.
- The conference emphasized that the party must earn back voters' trust; no one announced a presidential run, but contenders previewed their cases.
- Commentators debated whether the MAGA movement can outlast Donald Trump after results that upended assumptions about where either party can win.
Reactions
- Hakeem Jeffries told the conference he plans a robust agenda including reversing Medicaid cuts, banning congressional stock trading, and overturning Citizens United.
- James Talarico urged Democrats to work with President Trump and make his final two years the most productive of any presidency.
- Mikie Sherrill cautioned that Trump is a bad faith actor who never delivers, advising Democrats to lay out their own agenda for him to sign.
- Tim Carney forecast that Republicans have no juice left to squeeze from MAGA and that JD Vance cannot succeed as the next Trump.
- E.J. Dionne said MAGA is dead as such because it was rooted in a contradiction, and predicted Democrats will be disciplined in their investigations.
- Jason Crow said Democrats won places they had never won but voters are not fully embracing the party, a trust he says will take more than one cycle to earn.
Timeline newest first
Democrats gathered at a two-day "What's Next" conference in Denver on November 12 and 13, 2026, to chart their path after the midterm elections.
An opinion podcast brought together Robert Siegel, E.J. Dionne Jr., and Tim Carney to debate whether MAGA can outlast Donald Trump and what Democrats can do with their new power.
Sources newest first
- 'We can't let them down' -- After midterm wins, Democrats turn to charting path ahead
NPR reports that after their strong 2026 midterm showing, Democrats gathered at a "What's Next" conference in Denver, where speakers from Pete Buttigieg to James Talarico debated how to earn back voters' trust and whether to work with President Trump. Hakeem Jeffries laid out a robust agenda, while potential presidential contenders offered previews of their theories of the case.
Opinion | ‘There’s No Juice Left to Squeeze From MAGA’The New York Times publishes a transcript of a 33-minute episode of its Opinion podcast "The Opinions," in which Robert Siegel, E.J. Dionne Jr., and Tim Carney debate whether MAGA can outlast Donald Trump after 2026 midterms that upended assumptions about where either party can win. Carney argues the Trump vote was never truly conservative or Republican and says Republicans have no juice left to squeeze from MAGA, while Dionne cites Democrats' 56 percent House popular vote and predicts they will push popular legislation like restoring health care cuts.
Background newest first
Democrat Mary Peltola is likely to win Alaska’s Senate race, as vote counting continuesnbcnews.com· 1h
NBC News' Decision Desk says Democrat Mary Peltola is likely to win Alaska's uncalled Senate race over Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, having expanded her narrow lead with each new batch of votes. With ballots postmarked by Election Day counted through Nov. 13, 2026, and ranked-choice runoffs possible, a Peltola win would give Democrats a 56-44 Senate majority in 2027.
Privacy advocates push Dems to do something about warrantless surveillancemotherjones.com· 3h
A Mother Jones article reports that a growing coalition of political and civil society groups is pushing the incoming Democratic-majority Congress to curb warrantless surveillance, while Trump officials and some Democrats urge Republicans to renew Section 702 during the lame duck session before guardrails can be added. Eighty civil rights groups, in a letter shared with Mother Jones, urge Democratic leaders to make reining in surveillance an urgent priority, citing Flock cameras, data-broker purchases, and spying by agencies like ICE.
Perhaps the Rumors of Democracy’s Demise Were PrematureEmily Bazelon argues in The New York Times that the November 2026 midterms were a crucial test of American democracy, and the country passed: Trump accepted the results, courts blocked federal efforts to seize ballots, and Republicans ran 13 points behind. But Bazelon says democracy remains damaged, and rebuilding will pose huge hurdles at home and abroad.
Just for Skeets and Giggles (11.14.26)substack.com· 4h
In a news roundup, Jay Kuo surveys the week after the 2026 election: votes still being counted, Democrats at 56 Senate seats, Lauren Boebert's loss in Colorado, and Trump's stalled press secretary search. He also covers Jensen Huang's Nvidia resignation, an FAA grounding that stranded tens of thousands, Stephen Miller's elevation to chief of staff, and a runaway corgi race.
Will Trump’s lame duck presidency push him further beyond constraints of the law?theguardian.com· 10h
The Guardian examines whether Donald Trump's presidency, weakened by the Democrats' 13-point 2026 midterm landslide, will push further past legal constraints in his final two years, citing an eight-month Iran war, immigration raids and cost-of-living pressures as the rout's causes. Miles Taylor warns Trump may defy court orders and escalate abroad, while Newt Gingrich predicts an aggressive comeback and Hillary Clinton expects him to become "even weirder and, sadly, more dangerous".
Movement to end electoral college gets boost after Democratic winswashingtonpost.com· 35h
The Washington Post reports that the movement to award the presidency to the national popular vote winner gained momentum after Democrats won full control of state governments in Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, five uncommitted states with 61 electoral votes among them; 18 states and D.C. with 222 electoral votes have already joined, and the compact takes effect at 270. Opponents, including conservative lawyer Daniel Lennington, call the compact an illegal workaround and predict a barrage of litigation that supporters would have to win entirely.
Rep.-elect Don Leonard Says Senior Dems Threatened to Make His Life “Living Hell” over Jeffries Votedemocracynow.org· 2d
Democracy Now!'s November 12, 2026, headlines lead with Rep.-elect Don Leonard's post that senior House Democrats threatened to make his life a "living hell" after he set conditions for backing Hakeem Jeffries for speaker, as 11 Democrats missed an impeachment vote on Pete Hegseth. The headlines also cover Scott Colom's historic Mississippi Senate win, the Nasser Hospital strike in Gaza that killed surgeon Dr. Rizk Abu Shaira, Jensen Huang's resignation from Nvidia amid reports of a Chinese spy affair, Trump's Veterans Day defense of attacks on Iran and Venezuela, and a general strike in Spain over housing costs.
