2026 Midterm Elections - All eyes on Texas tonight

[CharmCityTiger]

I don't see this strategy working. Dem voters won't reflexively vote for someone just to spite the other party the same way Republicans will.

 

[Kingpin]

I don't see this strategy working. Dem voters won't reflexively vote for someone just to spite the other party the same way Republicans will.

I’m a registered Republican. I am so that I can vote in Pub primaries here in Ga. I vote against every Trump endorsed/MAGA candidate on the ballot. In the General election I blindly vote straight Dem.

 

[OldWHEEL]

I really need some good news tomorrow. Of late, I feel like I’m living in bizarro world for realz

 

[nycfan]

The tactic has been a mixed bag for Dems at least. Famously did not work out for the Clinton campaign when they boosted Trump in the 2016 primary, but there has been success in promoting crazy R senate candidates

Claire McCaskill won at least one and maybe two US Senate elections that way, but finally Missouri had gone full Tea Party/MAGA.

 

[Mulberry Heel]

I know you know this and probably agree with it, but these things are super state-specific. Talarico would be a fucking disaster in Oregon. Crockett would be the obvious choice in Maryland. But in Texas, I can't help but think Talarico is the best possible option, by several orders of magnitude. That's not a knock on Crockett. If anything, it's a knock on Texas. But more than anything, it's just a recognition that the candidate has to fit the state.

I still think Talarico's odds should be less than 40%. But almost anyone else would be less than 20%, so I'll take Talarico in a heartbeat.

I saw a poll recently that had Crockett ahead in the primary, I was surprised as pretty much every other poll I've seen regarding this race showed Talarico leading. I would think, just based on a superficial look at both candidates, that Talarico's religious appeal would appeal more generally in Texas than Crockett's aggressive partisanship. Based on past experience with Texas elections I'll admit that I have a hard time believing that a black woman from an urban district can win statewide in Texas in a general election, although to be fair any Democrat winning in Texas seems like a real long shot.

 

[Zoo_View]

Idc about the sheriff primary. Nothing Allam has said about Foushee is inaccurate. We don’t need a candidate in a liberal district who is awash in AIPAC money, and I expect she will lose the primary on Tuesday.

I realize you wouldn’t care about the sheriff’s race. It’s arguably the most important elective office in a county; but, you don’t care about it.

 

[Zoo_View]

So if it comes down to Platner versus Collins, who would you vote for - or would you just not vote? And I'm not arguing for Platner, just curious.

If I still lived in Maine, I’d vote for whoever is on the ballot against Susan Collins. I voted against her in 2014 and 2008. I’d have voted against her in 2020 (I knew her opponent in 2020 and that was a dead woman walking from Day 1 despite huge money - Sarah Gideon; as cold of a fish as had run for political office as ever and a truly insincere person).

I’d likely vote Platner in the primary just because he looks more likely to win in November; and, I’ve been through Maine elections with Democratic retreads like Mills. If Platner is a Fetterman or Sinema (we knew who Manchin was), primary his ass. A candidate with a Sinema/Fetterman record would lose a Democratic primary.

 

[EyeballKid]

You reject the idea that he is anti-Semitic and I can appreciate how one gets there from his campaign rhetoric. But how do you explain away the repeated instances of not just soft anti Semitic dalliances but virulently anti Semitic symbols, tertiary associates, and public appearances with openly far right anti-Semites?

My sense is Platner is viewing his campaign purely through the lens of populist labor and that comes with some creepy bedfellows. It probably also works in Maine.

Personally, I think it’s pretty easy to explain away the appearance of antisemitism by way of his time as a grunt in the military.

It’s easy to accept and even befriend virulent antisemites in the military. It’s pretty commonplace among enlisted white men.

It’s hard to extricate oneself from your peer group. Even once you realize that many of your peers are racist and/or antisemitic, its difficult to suss out every source of that racism/antisemitism and ensure that you don’t associate with anyone who still holds those views and that you appropriately disavow all the folks who you once counted as buddies in the foxhole.

 

[nycfan]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/03/02/ryan-zinke-retiring-congress-montana/

 

[Paine]

I realize you wouldn’t care about the sheriff’s race. It’s arguably the most important elective office in a county; but, you don’t care about it.

I don’t live in Orange County.

 

[Ddseddse]

Voting day here in NC! Let's do this. Don't skip it even if you think "it's only the primaries". Don't be satisfied by Dem whatever candidates somebody else has picked for you. We need your help to ensure the best make it thought to the general. Plenty of time to do 20 mins of research today if you haven't already and then get out and VOTE!

 

[heelinhell]

Voting day here in NC! Let's do this. Don't skip it even if you think "it's only the primaries". Don't be satisfied by Dem whatever candidates somebody else has picked for you. We need your help to ensure the best make it thought to the general. Plenty of time to do 20 mins of research today if you haven't already and then get out and VOTE!

Me and the missus voted last week. We voted for the candidates who were far left Antifa loving socialistic communists who hate Amerika.

 

[dcf2]

I'm in Chapel Hill. Per the machine counter I was voter #21 today at about 7:15 AM. Seems low compared to previous Primary elections - perhaps more early voting this year?

 

[rodoheel]

Here's another piece on the Texas Dem primary that I tend to agree with:

Jasmine Crockett or James Talarico? Democrats Don’t Have an Easy Answer, but They Do Have a Clear One.

The party clearly needs a new path forward, and the Texas duo offers a pair of visions that are compelling—and competing.

slate.com

This article gets at a point I have been trying to make in other contexts, which is that while it is important for Dems to be more aggressive in rhetorically taking the fight to Pubs, and more willing to get down and fight in the mud when needed, that doesn't mean we should be steering towards Dem leaders who are, in effect, the lefty version of Trump. My preference for Talarico over Crockett is not because I prefer "taking the high road" when it comes to disagreements with Republicans, but because I see Trumpian tendencies in Crockett's rhetorical style, attempts to shut down critical press, and her relentless self-promotion - in other words, I worry that we are essentially conceding our shift into a politics where the ability to serve the best put-downs in an easily consumable clip and sell the most merch is more important than the actual substance of improving people's lives and governing effectively.

There is absolutely a place for people like Crockett in the Democratic party, but personally I think we will be better served if we run candidates for major national offices who approach politics more like Talarico.

 

[korgguy1971]

 

[Icky Mettle]

Two can play that game. If we have free and fair elections and a Democrat becomes president:
“Please stand up and applaud if…

…you don’t think our government should send militarized police into American cities to harass and kill people?

…you think people who victimize underage girls who are victims of sex trafficking should be held accountable even when it’s a president of the United States.

…you don’t think billionaires should have more influence over the government than Americans who aren’t wealthy.”

…and so on….

 

[superrific]

in other words, I worry that we are essentially conceding our shift into a politics where the ability to serve the best put-downs in an easily consumable clip and sell the most merch is more important than the actual substance of improving people's lives and governing effectively.

This is correct. And this, I think, is the root of the young'uns dissatisfaction with the Dems. This must be what "another sternly worded letter" is all about -- i.e. that Schumer should be blasting one-liners on CNN rather than writing to a bureaucrat. Because I can't think of what else "Do something!" could possibly mean.

And of course, the difference between a letter and Jasmine Crockett is basically nil in practical effect.

 

[korgguy1971]

Two can play that game. If we have free and fair elections and a Democrat becomes president:
“Please stand up and applaud if…

…you don’t think our government should send militarized police into American cities to harass and kill people?

…you think people who victimize underage girls who are victims of sex trafficking should be held accountable even when it’s a president of the United States.

…you don’t think billionaires should have more influence over the government than Americans who aren’t wealthy.”

…and so on….

Couldn't agree more. It's just funny and predictable that they're recycling the "Kamala is for they/them; Dipshit is for you" thing.

 

[sunnyheel]

Here's another piece on the Texas Dem primary that I tend to agree with:

Jasmine Crockett or James Talarico? Democrats Don’t Have an Easy Answer, but They Do Have a Clear One.

The party clearly needs a new path forward, and the Texas duo offers a pair of visions that are compelling—and competing.

slate.com

This article gets at a point I have been trying to make in other contexts, which is that while it is important for Dems to be more aggressive in rhetorically taking the fight to Pubs, and more willing to get down and fight in the mud when needed, that doesn't mean we should be steering towards Dem leaders who are, in effect, the lefty version of Trump. My preference for Talarico over Crockett is not because I prefer "taking the high road" when it comes to disagreements with Republicans, but because I see Trumpian tendencies in Crockett's rhetorical style, attempts to shut down critical press, and her relentless self-promotion - in other words, I worry that we are essentially conceding our shift into a politics where the ability to serve the best put-downs in an easily consumable clip and sell the most merch is more important than the actual substance of improving people's lives and governing effectively.

There is absolutely a place for people like Crockett in the Democratic party, but personally I think we will be better served if we run candidates for major national offices who approach politics more like Talarico.

Likewise but moreover I think it’s imperative that the new Democratic game plan must include appeals to broader and deeper values. The values that distinguish democracies from authoritarian regimes. Values like those practiced by Jesus and regardless of one’s position on the religious element.

The party that offers a unifying, patriotic (contra nationalistic) message will have an opening to change the nation for the good.

 

[heelinhell]

Here's another piece on the Texas Dem primary that I tend to agree with:

Jasmine Crockett or James Talarico? Democrats Don’t Have an Easy Answer, but They Do Have a Clear One.

The party clearly needs a new path forward, and the Texas duo offers a pair of visions that are compelling—and competing.

slate.com

This article gets at a point I have been trying to make in other contexts, which is that while it is important for Dems to be more aggressive in rhetorically taking the fight to Pubs, and more willing to get down and fight in the mud when needed, that doesn't mean we should be steering towards Dem leaders who are, in effect, the lefty version of Trump. My preference for Talarico over Crockett is not because I prefer "taking the high road" when it comes to disagreements with Republicans, but because I see Trumpian tendencies in Crockett's rhetorical style, attempts to shut down critical press, and her relentless self-promotion - in other words, I worry that we are essentially conceding our shift into a politics where the ability to serve the best put-downs in an easily consumable clip and sell the most merch is more important than the actual substance of improving people's lives and governing effectively.

There is absolutely a place for people like Crockett in the Democratic party, but personally I think we will be better served if we run candidates for major national offices who approach politics more like Talarico.

I'm guessing Talarico will win tonight and I hope he will inspire a huge turnout by Dems in the general election against the GQP white guy...