2026 Midterm Elections

[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.