Virginia Holman speaks at a town hall meeting for constituents held by Democratic U.S. Senator Andy Kim at Teamsters Local 331 Hall in Egg Harbor City, New Jersey, U.S. March 20, 2025. REUTERS/Hannah Beier
It isn't just Republicans who are getting an earful from constituents during rowdy town hall meetings. According to a new report, Democrats are also in the hot seat over their perceived fecklessness in the early stages of President Donald Trump's second term.
In a Friday article for Axios, journalist Andrew Solender wrote that multiple Democratic members of Congress confided to him that they were feeling significant pressure from voters back home upset with their response to Trump and the Republican majorities in the House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. One "unnamed senior House Democrat" told Solender that lawmakers who have been "voting ... with Republicans on these messaging bills are people that could get primaried" in 2026.
One key point of contention many town hall attendees had with their Democratic representatives and senators was the recent decision by Senate Democratic leadership to pass the House Republican-approved government funding bill rather than attempt to force the GOP back to the negotiating table. While all but one House Democrat voted against the bill — Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) was the lone supporter — Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and nine other Democrats voted against the rest of their party.
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Now, some Democrats say they've been peppered with questions at town halls over Schumer's leadership in particular. The senior House Democrat added that constituents were also irate over several House Democrats voting with Republicans to censure Rep. Al Green (D-Texas), who stood up and shouted at Trump during his joint address to Congress.
"Another thing I got was: 'Democrats are too nice. Nice and civility doesn't work. Are you prepared for violence?'" The unnamed lawmaker said. They added that one Democratic colleague recently called them in tears, saying: "They hate us."
"My constituents have passionately said they are not happy with Democratic leadership," said Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) "They expect more from me and from Democrats in Congress."
Not all Democratic lawmakers have been met with anger, however. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) recently posted a video to her Bluesky account of a massive crowd of supporters attending a rally in Greeley, Colorado she was speaking at alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) The progressive lawmaker said that while she and Sanders were expecting 2,000, a crowd of more than 11,000 showed up. Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders have been touring the country in both red and blue states and drawing large crowds in the midst of an intra-party struggle among Democrats to seize the mantle of leadership.
Click here to read Axios' full article.