Swing and Red State Democrats Warn Party Against Anti-Trump Path

Democratic candidates running in red districts are warning they cannot rely on the same anti-Trump playbook from previous cycles to win in 2026 — even as others in the party want to make fighting back against the president the party’s primary national message.

Several Democratic candidates hoping to flip a GOP-leaning seat next year said they want to run a policy-focused message rather than paint President Donald Trump as a villain. The push comes as Democrats grapple with reshaping their message at the national level to win back voters who shifted toward Trump in 2024.

Rep. Adam Gray (D-Calif.), a self-described “conservative Democrat” who flipped a GOP-held seat last cycle, said he rejects the idea of having a “national message” for the party when it comes to talking about Trump.

Bespoke Approach

“The idea that what’s good for Manhattan in New York is good for Merced in the San Joaquin Valley is absurd on its face,” Gray said in an interview with Bloomberg Government.

Democratic hopeful Bobby Pulido, who is running against GOP Rep. Monica De La Cruz in Texas, said the party must avoid talking down to voters.

“You have to respect voters,” Pulido said. “Right now, there is so much name-calling and ugliness. I did not vote the same way they did, but the last thing I’m going to do is call them names.”

Lauren Harper Pope, co-founder of the centrist Welcome PAC, which helps elect Democrats in Trump-won districts, is trying to change party messaging. “Talking about Trump all the time is incredibly lazy,” Harper Pope said in an interview with Bloomberg Government. “When voters hear people talk crap about Trump, that’s what they expect from Democrats. That’s not what we’re trying to do.”

Welcome PAC helped invest in Gray’s race last cycle and has also helped boost notable party mavericks, including Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) and Jared Golden (D-Maine). Gluesenkamp Perez and Golden have both sought to give the small caucus of Blue Dog Democrats a bigger voice in Washington.

History Lessons

Phil Gardner, a senior adviser for the Blue Dog Action Fund, said focusing on Trump also hampers the party’s ability to build an alternative platform to sell to voters when the president is out of office.

“Democrats have been trying the same thing for 10 years, and each time Donald Trump’s been on the ballot, he gets more and more votes,” Gardner said. “So I don’t think it’s a viable strategy for the long-term of the party. The fact that Trump can only serve two terms means the party’s eventually going to have to face a reckoning about it.”

JoAnna Mendoza, challenging Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.), said her campaign is going into Republican areas to reach Trump voters.

“Trump narrowly won this district by .7% and I think that just goes to show that there are a lot of independent thinkers and voters here and in Arizona who are just looking for effective leadership,” Mendoza said in an interview.

In Virginia, Democrat Shannon Taylor, who is challenging GOP Rep. Rob Wittman, is counting on her experience of being a political minority to flip a red district. In 2011, Taylor became the first Democrat in 24 years to be elected as Henrico County Commonwealth’s Attorney. Virginia Democrats are also pushing for new maps ahead of next year, which could make Wittman’s GOP-friendly seat more competitive.

“As a Democrat, I win my county because I’ve been able to reach out and touch people who might affiliate themselves with a different type of label,” Taylor said. “We know there are issues that all people can agree on, regardless of party affiliation, and that’s why I think it’s so important to really get back out there and talk to people.”

Taylor is centering her message on the economy, crime, and other “pocketbook” issues she says are the most common concerns.

Party Problems

Beyond Trump, Democratic candidates are also grappling with the dissatisfaction people are feeling in their own party as they try to make an alternative case to Republican control.

Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie is running against moderate GOP Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick in a suburban Philadelphia-area seat the Republican won by more than 10 points despite the district going for Vice President Kamala Harris.

Harvie said there is a lack of trust from voters in the party, which must be solved from the bottom up.

“It comes down to how people’s lives are being affected,” Harvie said. “It’s not enough just to start yelling at the White House — whoever the occupant is.”

George Hornedo, who is running a primary against Rep. Andre Carson (D-Ind.), said he’s also felt frustration among Democrats and is seeking a message outside of Trump.

“If we make our entire message about him, then we lose the plot,” Hornedo said. “So sure, outrage absolutely excites the base, but outrage is not a strategy in and of itself.”

Left-Wing Counter Point

Liberal Democrats have responded to Trump’s reign by expanding their media presence and holding rallies to galvanize their base.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) led a “Fighting Oligarchy” tour where he’s been joined by Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.). Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) and others praised organized rallies like the “No Kings” protests earlier this month.

Other progressive groups have urged elected Democrats to block Trump’s judicial picks, although many of those calls have fallen short.

A senior Democratic aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak the press, defended those making the argument about Trump and argued Democrats should be more aggressive. The aide discouraged Democrats from negotiating with Trump, adding that it “waters down” their party’s priorities.

A series of younger, more liberal primary challengers are also running this cycle in response to dissatisfaction about Democratic leadership not doing enough against Trump.