The mid-term elections in 2026 are crucial for our survival as a country, as a species, and as a planet
The survival of our planet is at stake, and everything Trump and his MAGA Republicans are doing is moving us in the wrong direction:
- They are undoing everything that has so far been achieved to address the climate crisis, when much more is urgently needed to prevent a full-blown climate catastrophe.
- They have dismantled all the treaties aimed at keeping the nuclear arms race at bay, when what is urgently needed is the total elimination of these weapons before they eliminate us.
- There are so many other things they are doing wrong it is impossible to list them all!
How does this election affect the future of Trump?
We cannot directly remove Trump with this election. If Democrats regain control of the House of Representatives, they can impeach him. But they have already done that twice before! It takes 67 Senators to convict the President and remove him after the House impeaches. And that is beyond the scope of possibilities for this election.
But with Democrats in control of the House, Trump can no longer count on the support of Congress for any more of his mad antics. He can’t get them to pass any more laws restricting voter rights or cutting benefits for seniors or the disabled or unemployed.
And if Democrats also take control of the Senate, he becomes effectively powerless to appoint any more MAGA judges, cabinet positions or other administration officials. He will no longer be able pass any bills at all that benefit only billionaires or corporate interests. And he can be severely restrained on his use of the military abroad and at home with a simple majority in both Houses.
That’s not enough to stop him completely, but it’s a lot! And it may be enough to push him to quit if he feels he can no longer pursue his agenda and sees that the country is turning against him. He likes being the big boss, but he doesn’t like being a “loser.”
The Long Game
The mid-term elections are important for slowing, and some cases stopping, Trump in his tracks. But that is still a long way from the end goal – which is a radical reversal of direction to save humanity and the planet.
The Presidential election in 2028 will be when we can really start to reverse course and start moving in right direction again. That doesn’t mean going back to the “normal times” of Biden or even Obama. They laid the groundwork for the backlash we’ve seen under Trump. We must move beyond that in 2028, and that is the biggest challenge.
We have just two years to counter the lies and enormous influence of the MAGA movement, which is funded by billionaires and propped up by both the mass media and by social media (which they own). And we have just two years to convince Democrats that more of the same is not enough!
We need a Presidential candidate in 2028 who is a real moral leader, statesperson, and diplomat. We need someone willing to stand up to billionaries and corporate interests to save humanity and the planet. In a country of 300 million people, it is totally possible to find that person and elect them the next President of the United States. And once the mid-terms are out of the way, the race begins to chart that new path for the US with the elections in 2028.
And, of course, the US will not change overnight in 2028, even with the best future-oriented President we can hope for. There is so much more to be done at the local and state level to transform this country and save the planet and the human race!
But we have to start where we are, and with the mid-term elections that are coming up very soon.
House Races
Democrats have a very good chance to take back control of the House. But nothing can be taken for granted when Republicans will be pouring millions of dollars into critical races and doing everything they can to make voting more difficult for people likely to vote Democrat.
Currently Republicans control the house with 218 Representatives to 214 for the Democrats. Democrats need a net gain of just 4 seats to re-take control of the House. They are likely to lose at least a few seats due to re-districting in states like Texas, so they will need to gain more than 4 from the Republicans to make up for that.
Some of seats Democrats are most likely to win from Republicans and thus gain control of the House include:
IA-1: won by Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks in 2024 by just 799 votes out of more than 400,000 votes cast.
CO-8: won by Republican Gabe Evans in 2024 with a majority of just 0.73% (2,449 votes out of 333,000 votes cast).
ME-2:
OH-9:
PA-7:
PA-10:
If you live in one of these Districts (or others shown here) and are considering voting third party or not at all, please consider the stakes involved and consider swapping your vote with someone in a “safe” red or blue district who is willing to vote for your choice of a third party in their district on your behalf.
And if you live in a safe red or blue district (see list by state), and plan to vote Democrat even though your vote will not really count where you are, please consider swapping your vote with someone in one of the critical, “purple,” districts, whose vote may decide whether Democrats regain control of the House or not.
There are also many districts that could go either way, in which case you can choose whether to play it safe and vote Democrat where you are, or to take a risk and help ensure Democrats win at least the key districts they are most likely to win, by swapping your vote.
Senate Races
Republicans currently control the Senate with 53 Senators to 47 for the Democrats (including two independents). That means Democrats would need a net gain of just 4 seats to retake control of the Senate (if the Senate is split 50-50, Vice President Vance has the casting vote).
Only 35 out of 100 Senators are up for re-election in 2026. Of these, at least 13 are pretty solidly Republican and 11 are more or less solidly Democrat. Two current seats held by Democrats, however, are vulnerable to being taken by the Republicans (in Georgia and Michigan). That leaves 9 that could potentially switch from Republican to Democrat. Just four of these would give Democrats control of the Senate.
The Senate seats most likely to change hands in the mid-terms and win Democrats control of the Senate are:
Susan Collins seat in Maine
Thom Tillis’ seat in North Carolina
John Husted’s seat in Ohio
and Mary Peltola’s seat in Alaska
If you live in one of these states (or others shown here) and are considering voting third party or not at all, please consider the stakes involved and consider swapping your vote with someone in a “safe” red or blue state who is willing to vote for your choice of a third party in their state on your behalf.
And if you live in a safe red or blue state (see list here), and plan to vote Democrat even though your vote will not really count where you are, please consider swapping your vote with someone in one of the critical, “purple,” states, whose vote may decide whether Democrats regain control of the Senate or not.
There are also a few states that could go either way, in which case you can choose whether to play it safe and vote Democrat where you are, or to take a risk and help ensure Democrats win at least the key states they are most likely to win, by swapping your vote.