Looming Trump-fueled collapse makes it easier for Dems to recruit candidates: report

Donald Trump's increasing unpopularity with voters is making it easier for the Democratic Party leadership to recruit stronger candidates — thereby increasing the chances the Senate could flip in the upcoming 2026 midterm election, according to a report.

Trump’s name won’t be on the ballot next year, but his presence will loom large as voters head off to the polls, which has Republicans quaking and Democrats succeeding at encouraging some Democratic heavyweights to make the leap and sign up to run against vulnerable Republicans.

According to a report from NOTUS, the life of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has become measurably easier after he recruited a trio of Democratic lawmakers in the states of Maine, North Carolina and Ohio, setting up the party to flip the Senate.

“At a time when many politicians are fleeing Washington, Senate Democrats have persuaded a trio of candidates — Roy Cooper in North Carolina, Sherrod Brown in Ohio and Janet Mills in Maine — to run even though they had little apparent incentive to endure a grueling campaign next year," reported NOTUS.

Add to that, Democratic Rep. Mary Sattler Peltola Alaska’s lone member in the House of Representatives, is giving thought to running for one of her state's two Senate seats at Schumer's urging as he looks to pick up another seat.

Reporting that earlier, “Democrats had said they would have felt fortunate if even one of the three had decided to launch a campaign,” NOTUS noted, “The states these candidates are running in are three of Democrats’ top targets for 2026, making their decisions potentially pivotal as the party embarks on a long-shot effort to flip control of the Senate.”

Stephanie Schriock, former head of Emily’s List, applauded the growing slate of Democrats who are jumping into the fray, explaining, “I don’t think it matters what age, what background, what office you’ve had before. These are folks who know there is just a gigantic challenge in front of us, and now they want to be the ones who roll up their sleeves"

The report adds that Ohio’s Brown is the most surprising candidate, suggesting, “The senator just lost an intense reelection campaign last year after 18 years in the Senate and was considering a bid for governor, which some Ohio Democrats encouraged him to pursue. Even if he wins a Senate seat in the red state, he would have to run for reelection again in 2028 — the third consecutive cycle in which the 73-year-old would have to run a campaign.”

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