At the Races: Democrats Embrace a Fight
Table of Contents
Welcome to At the Races! Each week we bring you news and analysis from the CQ Roll Call campaign team. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here.
By Daniela Altimari, Niels Lesniewski and Mary Ellen McIntire
Michelle Obama stood on the stage at the democratic National Convention in 2016 and famously issued a call to reject the politics of personal pettiness.
For Democrats, those days are long over. From Gavin NewsomS Trump-trolling social media posts to the party’s willingness to engage in tit-for-tat redistricting, Democratic leaders are embracing a more combative approach.
“We cannot be the only party that plays by the rules anymore,” DNC Chair Ken Martin said at this week’s Democratic National Committee summer meeting in Minneapolis. “we’re not going to have a hand tied behind our back anymore. Let’s grow a damn spine and get in this fight, Democrats.”
But it will take more than tough talk and all-caps taunts to address the democratic Party’s underlying challenges, including money woes, stark divisions over war in gaza and a looming voter registration crisis. (The party has lost ground even in deep blue states such as Rhode Island, according to a review by the Providence Journal.)
And a new analysis by the New York Times outlines a “nightmare scenario” for Democrats driven by national population trends that show a sharp shift toward red states such as Texas and Florida and away from New York, California and other Democratic strongholds.The Times projects that, over the next decade, “the Electoral College will tilt significantly away from Democrats,” which could have drastic implications for the party’s presidential prospects in 2032 and beyond.
Democrats got a glimmer of good news from Iowa this week, when Catelin Drey won an upset victory and flipped an open seat in the state senate. Drey, who leads a parent-advocacy group, defeated Republican Christopher Prosch, 55 to 44.7 percent. The seat was previously held by Republican Rocky De Witt, who died of cancer in June, and Drey’s win breaks the GOP’s supermajority in the Iowa senate.
It also marks the third victory by Hawkeye State Democrats in special legislative elections this year – and gives the party a jolt of optimism in advance of the midterms. “Our state is ready for a new direction,” state Democratic chair Rita Hart said in a statement, “and Iowa Democrats will keep putting forward candidates who can deliver better representation for Iowans.”
Starting gate
beehive boundaries: A Utah judge this week tossed the state’s congressional maps and directed its legislature to enact new lines for the 2026 midterm cycle that comply with
Political Roundup: August 28, 2025
Texas shakeup: Democrat Vicente Gonzalez is now facing a potential challenge from former candidate Jessica Flores. Flores had been campaigning against Rep. Henry Cuellar in the 28th District but switched back to the 34th after the Texas legislature approved new congressional maps making that district more hospitable to the GOP.
Unconventional conventions: Both parties are contemplating holding party conventions before next year’s midterm elections.Axios reported that some Democrats are considering a “mini convention” as a way to generate news coverage and raise money. On Thursday, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that he is also “thinking of recommending a national convention to the Republican Party just prior to the midterms.”
Rumors fly: California Sen.Alex Padilla left the door open for a 2026 gubernatorial run as rumors have swirled that the senator could enter the race.
Nathan’s notes
Roll Call columnist Nathan L. gonzales of Inside Elections takes a look this week at the baselines for party divisions in districts in 2026,including some of the potential new-look districts in California and Texas amid recent redistricting efforts. As Gonzales explains,the “index aims to approximate what share of the vote a ‘typical’ Democrat or Republican might receive in any given district.”
What we’re reading
#NJGOV: Politico reports that Republican Jack Ciattarelli’s path to winning New jersey’s governorship this fall may run through Black and Hispanic voters, two groups with which Trump made gains in the state last year. In June’s Democratic primary, nominee Mikie sherrill drew less support in many of the Black and Hispanic areas that shifted most toward Trump in November.
Town hall blues: Rep. Barry Moore, who is running for Alabama’s open Senate seat, earned jeers and cries of “shame” during a town hall, according to AL.com.