The biggest losers of 2025: Who fell flat as the year closed
2025 didn’t just expose Democratic divisions — it created a short list of political losers whose missteps are already shaping the battlefield for 2026. From establishment leaders squeezed by a restless progressive base to national figures who burned precious time, this past year has left behind a series of cautionary tales for a party out of power. MODERATE DEMOCRATS PUSH BACK AS PROGRESSIVES MOVE TO OUST JEFFRIES, CLARK OVER TRUMP STRATEGY The loudest, most visible Democratic figures haven’t just voiced opposition to the Trump administration — they’ve also made it clear they expect a new version of the party to emerge going forward. From Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani in New York City promising expansive government program increases to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s hint that she could beat Vice President JD Vance in a bid for the presidency, progressives can easily say they had some of the most visible momentum in 2025. And that’s bad news for old-school Democrats. As recently as last month, both House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and House Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., faced primary challenges from their progressive base. These challengers cited dissatisfaction with their resistance against the administration. It’s unclear if those calls are disproportionately loud in a moment where Democrats find themselves out of power. But many moderate Democrats told Fox News Digital they don’t think it’s helping win over the electorate’s political middle. Should progressives continue to crowd out the picture in 2026, more establishment Democrats may find it increasingly difficult to ignore pressure from their far-left flank as the nation heads into the midterms. GOP SEIZES ON DEM CIVIL WAR AS PROGRESSIVES JUMP INTO KEY 2026 SENATE RACES: ‘THEY’RE IN SHAMBLES’ California Gov. Gavin Newsom is running out of time to prove why he could be something more than a party messaging figure. In the past year, he’s pigeonholed himself into exactly that role. In 2025, Newsom cemented himself as one of the key Democratic foils to Trump’s agenda. And on that front, there’s little question he capitalized on the attention. Most notably, Newsom pushed through a redistricting effort meant to squeeze five Republicans out of office after Texas advanced a similar plan earlier this year. While the plan received mixed reviews — even from Democrats in the state who were wary of fighting fire with fire — it has certainly advanced Newsom’s national status. But like every would-be Trump foil, Newsom finds himself somewhat reliant on Trump for his next move. Should Newsom begin to position himself for a 2028 bid for the White House, he won’t have that luxury around forever, and he only has one more year as California’s governor. Newsom burned precious time in 2025 to show voters in California and across the country what kind of executive he could be. DEMOCRATIC HEAVYWEIGHTS HARRIS, NEWSOM TURN HEADS, FUEL 2028 SPECULATION On several key issues, former President Joe Biden’s legacy has already grown old in 2025. It took just weeks for the Trump administration to dismantle the claim that Biden was doing everything he could to stop illegal border crossings from pouring into the United States. With a few key executive orders, Trump brought the country to one of its lowest levels of border encounters ever. And while that’s the most notable entry, the list of double-takes doesn’t end there. An autopen investigation in the House of Representatives revealed Biden had delegated an unprecedented amount of authority to his aides. Moreover, a book put out by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson took a deep look at just how hard his inner circle had worked to maintain the president’s image amid concerns about his age and cognitive ability. Taken together, Biden’s administration just one year removed has plunged Democrats into questions of where to go next and provided Republicans with a wealth of evidence to make the case that Democrats weren’t as transparent about the country’s problems as they could have been. ‘ROCK STAR’ NEWSOM STEALS THE SHOW AT DNC SUMMIT AS DEMOCRATS HUNT FOR 2028 CONTENDER TO TAKE ON TRUMP Few political figures have had as politically damaging a year in 2025 as the Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. He received most of the blame for a disastrous 43-day government shutdown that largely left Democrats empty-handed. While Schumer himself didn’t vote with the eight Democrats who eventually supported a Republican plan to end the shutdown, he received calls to step aside in the aftermath for failing to keep Senate Democrats on the same page. According to many Republicans, the political calculus for Schumer during the shutdown was more about putting up a good enough fight to appease the progressive side of the Democratic base. But Schumer also failed to do that too. During the shutdown, the New York City mayoral race had come to its final stretch with little word from the Senate Minority Leader. When it became clear the self-proclaimed socialist Zohran Mamdani would capture the party’s nomination, Schumer tried to dodge questions about whether he would support his bid. That reluctance never went away and questions about the relationship between the two Democrats only intensified. Just days removed from the election, Schumer continued to give non-answers about Mamdani. Now at the close of 2025, Schumer has left questions unanswered about whether he can still effectively lead the party and whether he represents the party’s future.
How Charlie Kirk learned to turn off the phone — and why the Sabbath shaped his life and posthumous book
Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was exhausted and in physical pain when Pastor David Engelhardt persuaded him to pause his work week for one day and honor the Sabbath by turning off his phone and disconnecting from politics. Years later, Kirk authored a book championing how honoring the Sabbath transformed his life and opened doors to build better foundations for his relationships — whether it be with his wife, Erika, and their children, family and friends, and his relationship with God. “He would turn his phone off so he wouldn’t be distracted by his work. . . . He would spend his time with his wife and kids, and they would rest, and they would go on walks and . . . spend some time in scripture. He practiced it from Friday to Saturday. That’s what worked best for his schedule,” Englhardt, a TPUSA board member who has been a friend and pastor to the Kirks stretching back years, told Fox News Digital. Engelhardt, who is the pastor of Kings’ Church in New York City, spoke to Fox News Digital following the release of Kirk’s best-selling posthumous book, “Stop, in the Name of God: Why Honoring the Sabbath Will Transform Your Life,” which celebrates that honoring the Sabbath is the answer to an exhausted, anxious, always-online America. TURNING POINT USA HOLDS AMERICAFEST CONFERENCE FOLLOWING CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSINATION Engelhardt met Charlie Kirk through Erika Kirk when she lived in New York City, the pastor explained. He took Fox Digital through a conversation he shared with Charlie Kirk in 2021, when Englhardt took notice that the TPUSA chief was physically and mentally drained and on a trajectory to burnout. “He was physically in pain,” Engelhard told Fox News Digital. “He was having back issues, and knee issues and the burden of the organization was really heavy on his shoulders. And I said, ‘Charlie, I don’t think you can continue to do this unless you take the Sabbath. Unless you take this biblical command.’” The TPUSA chief initially resisted shutting off for one day to recalibrate for the next week. VANCE SAYS ‘AMERICA FIRST’ MOVEMENT REJECTS ‘PURITY TESTS,’ WELCOMES CRITICAL THINKERS “I think one of the things Charlie said was, like, ‘What if the president calls me? Like, what am I supposed to do?’ We live in a day and age where anyone can call you at any time . . . and he’s dealing with massive important matters of state. And you know the pushback, the response is like you actually have to care for yourself more than you care about your appearance in the eyes of the world. And you actually have to know that if you obey this and you actually turn off for 24 hours, it will bring blessing into your life,” he said. Engelhardt recounted that the pair “kind of argued about it for a minute” before Kirk warmed to the idea and adopted it with great success. “I just said, ‘Trust me, if you rest, you’ll have more energy and more capacity and more ability.’ And because he’s insanely disciplined, or was insanely disciplined, he started, I think, the next week after I challenged him, and he told me it saved his life, he told it changed his life. And I think that’s there’s so many people that burn out and crash and burn their lives, because they just don’t care for themselves They don’t take care of the body. They don’t recognize that we’re not machines, that we need seasonal rest.” DAVID MARCUS: ERIKA KIRK IS THE MOTHER SQUABBLING CONSERVATIVES NEED Honoring the Sabbath is one of the 10 Commandments, with Engelhardt pointing to both the Old and New Testaments outlining that God, Himself, did not need to rest on the seventh day as described in the Book of Genesis, as He is all powerful, but showed people that they need a pattern of weekly cycles of ends and new beginnings. “The commandment is that you’re not supposed to work on the Sabbath,” Engelhardt said. “And the idea is, the scripture says, in six days you shall labor, and on the seventh day you shall rest, because it is holy. And so it follows a pattern, the same pattern that we see in Genesis, where God works. He creates the whole world, and then He rests on that seventh day.” “The scripture says, His mercies are new every morning. And so, it’s a really important scripture or principle in the scripture that allows us to start again, to start afresh, to incorporate things like repentance,” the pastor said. Kirk’s posthumous book was released Dec. 9 and quickly became a best seller on Amazon lists, walking readers through how “observing the Sabbath isn’t a rejection of modern life but a rebellion against busyness and a pathway to genuine connection, peace, and presence,” the book description outlines, specifically, “how to unplug, recharge, and reconnect with God, family, and yourself in a way that nurtures your soul.” ERIKA KIRK WELCOMES ATTENDEES TO FIRST AMERICAFEST SINCE HUSBAND’S DEATH, ENDORSES JD VANCE FOR PRESIDENT The book’s release was followed by TPUSA holding its AmericaFest event in Arizona from Dec. 18 to Dec. 21, where conservatives, supporters of President Donald Trump and others took the stage, frequently celebrating Trump’s accomplishments following his return to office, as well as remembering Kirk following his assassination in September. Engelhardt told Fox Digital that Kirk’s book on the Sabbath was one of about four book projects Kirk was thinking about and working on ahead of his death, remarking that “Charlie was really excited about it … he just kept saying, ‘I have to get this Sabbath book out.’” During AmFest, old footage of Kirk celebrating his embrace of the Sabbath was projected out to the crowds. “I actually don’t work one day out of the week, so I take a Sabbath every Saturday, turn my phone off,” Kirk was heard saying in footage played on the first day of AmFest. “No work, just kids,
Trump, Zelenskyy to meet Sunday, as Ukrainian leader vows country will ‘do whatever it takes’ to end war
President Donald Trump will host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday in the latest effort to close out four years of war. Zelenskyy will meet Trump in Florida at the president’s Mar-a-Lago estate, where he has spent much of his time over the holiday period. Ukraine’s leader emphasized the need to negotiate from a position of strength in a public statement released prior to their meeting. Russian and Ukrainian negotiations have repeatedly broken down over where the final territorial lines will fall in a peace agreement. “Ukraine is willing to do whatever it takes to stop this war,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “For us, priority number one – or the only priority – is ending the war. For us, the priority is peace. We need to be strong at the negotiating table. To be strong, we need the support of the world: Europe and the United States.” TRUMP’S TEAM REPORTS CONCRETE PROGRESS IN UKRAINE PEACE NEGOTIATIONS WITH EUROPEAN PARTNERS “In this war of Russia against Ukraine, we want peace, and Russia demonstrates a desire to continue the war. If the whole world – Europe and America – is on our side, together we will stop Putin. Because together we will all want the same thing: an end to the war, peace – a normal peace, a sustainable peace, safe for the whole world,” he continued. “If anyone – whether the U.S. or Europe – is on Russia’s side, this means the war will continue. There are no other options here. And this is a risk for all countries in the world. Because Russia will not stop, regardless of any agreements, any eloquent messages from them. They will not stop at Ukraine,” Zelenskyy warned. Zelenskyy’s statement came after Russia redoubled its attacks against Kyiv, sending an overnight assault involving hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles on Saturday. Zelenskyy said the attack put the “true attitude” of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his inner circle on display. TRUMP TOUTS ‘TREMENDOUS PROGRESS’ BUT SAYS HE’LL MEET PUTIN AND ZELENSKYY ‘ONLY WHEN’ PEACE DEAL IS FINAL The overnight blitz in Ukraine’s capital left at least one person dead and 27 injured, local authorities told The Associated Press. Trump, ahead of the meeting with Zelenskyy, has said he will call the final shots on a peace deal to end the conflict. “He doesn’t have anything until I approve it,” Trump told Politico Friday. “So we’ll see what he’s got.” Fox News’ Greg Norman contributed to this report.
‘Unlucky’ Honduran woman arrested after allegedly running red light and crashing into ICE vehicle
A Honduran national had an “unlucky” encounter with Border Patrol enforcement on Friday. The woman allegedly ran a red light in Slidell, Louisiana, and rammed into an Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (ICE) vehicle, U.S. Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino wrote on X. ICE AGENTS OPEN FIRE ON VAN DRIVER WHO ALLEGEDLY TRIED TO RUN THEM OVER ON CHRISTMAS EVE “Apparently she never learned the lesson that red means stop,” Bovino wrote. “Not ‘accelerate and collide with a government vehicle actively enforcing federal law.’” No injuries were reported as a result of the crash, according to the post, but Bovino said she was “certainly taken into custody” following the accident. “Unlucky for her. Lucky for us,” Bovino continued in the post. ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT BITES ICE OFFICER IN ‘GROSS ATTACK’ WHILE RESISTING ARREST: DHS Federal agents were reportedly in the area as part of the Operation Catahoula Crunch. The operation targets illegal immigrants in the New Orleans area, according to officials. “Catahoula Crunch targets include violent criminals who were released after arrest for home invasion, armed robbery, grand theft auto and rape,” Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. ICE has reportedly apprehended approximately 370 people in the area, according to a Dec. 18 update. ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT TRUCK DRIVER ACCUSED IN FATAL WASHINGTON CRASH RELEASED ON $100,000 BOND “DHS is making the New Orleans community safer as it continues to arrest illegal alien drug dealers, hit-and-run criminals, and one monster who was convicted for arson and threatening a person with intent to terrorize,” McLaughlin said. The DHS reported that it has deported more than 622,000 individuals in 2025 as of Dec. 19. The department also reported that 2.5 million illegal immigrants have left the country, and an estimated 1.9 million self-deportations have occurred since President Donald Trump‘s crackdown on immigration. Details about the Honduran woman were not made publicly available. DHS did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Elon Musk warns ‘people will die’ over Mamdani’s FDNY commissioner pick, Lillian Bonsignore
Elon Musk on Friday slammed incoming New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani for selecting a woman without operational firefighting experience as the head of the Fire Department of the City of New York City (FDNY). “People will die because of this,” the billionaire provocateur, who served in President Donald Trump’s administration, wrote on X. “Proven experience matters when lives are at stake.” Mamdani, who will take office Jan. 1, appointed Lillian Bonsignore, a 31-year FDNY veteran who led EMS Operations during the COVID-19 pandemic, as FDNY commissioner this week. She retired in 2022. SENATE CONFIRMS ERIC ISAACMAN AS NASA CHIEF MONTHS AFTER TRUMP-MUSK RIFT THAT MAY HAVE PULLED HIS NOMINATION “The first woman to achieve a 4-star rank in FDNY history, she’s joining us as the FDNY Commissioner to bring her crisis leadership and operational expertise to this administration,” Mamdani wrote on X Tuesday. Bonsignore will be only the second woman to hold the position and the first openly gay person in the role. LETITIA JAMES, BERNIE SANDERS TO SWEAR IN FAR LEFT NYC MAYOR-ELECT MAMDANI Mamdani quickly responded to Musk on X, writing on Saturday, “Experience does matter, which is why I appointed the person who spent more than 30 years at EMS. You know, the workforce that addresses at least 70% of all calls coming into FDNY?” Fox News Digital has reached out to the FDNY and Mamdani’s team for comment. “I am honored, so honored, and humbled to stand before you as the new fire commissioner,” Bonsignore said at a Tuesday news conference. “This appointment represents a significant responsibility, one I accept with humility, dedication and a deep sense of commitment to the city and its people.” Outgoing NYC Mayor Eric Adams also made his own FDNY commissioner appointment this week, FDNY First Deputy Commissioner Mark Guerra. “Under our administration, keeping New Yorkers safe and protected has always been our North Star, and having principled, qualified public servants in place to lead our critical public safety agencies is crucial to fulfilling that goal; there’s no person who meets those high standards (like) Commissioner Mark Guerra,” Adams said Tuesday. “Lillian’s light is one that can’t be dimmed by anything else that takes place,” Mamdani said in response, according to FOX 5. “The mayor is free to continue to be the mayor until the end of this year and make decisions as such.”
FBI ramps up counter-drone efforts as Patel warns of growing threats from criminals, terrorists
FBI Director Kash Patel said Saturday that the Trump administration is ramping up its efforts to combat the growing threat posed by drones used by criminal networks, terrorist groups and foreign adversaries, launching a new national training program to help law enforcement detect and stop unlawful drone activity. Patel said the bureau has invested significant time and resources this year into modernizing its capabilities to counter unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). “Unmanned aircrafts are increasingly exploited by criminals, terrorists, and hostile foreign actors — making the counter UAS program a critical area for the FBI to modernize and adapt to stay ahead of the threat,” Patel wrote on X. Patel said President Donald Trump signed an executive order in June that led to the creation of a National Counter-UAS Training Center, which the FBI operates out of its Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL SAYS BUREAU RAMPING UP AI TO COUNTER DOMESTIC, GLOBAL THREATS The FBI director said the new training center prepares law enforcement to safely detect, identify, track and mitigate unlawful drone activity when legally authorized, in compliance with the National Defense Authorization Act passed by Congress this year. Patel said the facility will play a key role in preparing security operations for major upcoming events in the U.S., including the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics. “This is an investment that will pay huge dividends for America’s national security in the years to come,” he added. TRUMP ADMIN CUTS RED TAPE ON COMMERCIAL DRONES TO COMPETE WITH CHINA’S DOMINANCE OF THE MARKET Patel’s post underscores how the FBI is making counter-drone operations a top modernization priority, framing drones as an evolving national security threat. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino wrote on X Saturday that the “drone threat isn’t in the future, it’s in the now,” adding that the Trump administration was taking action to adapt to a “new threat ecosystem.” On Monday, the Federal Communications Commission announced it would ban new foreign-made drones due to national security concerns. The FCC added UAS and their critical components made in China and other foreign countries to its “covered list” that includes equipment determined to pose an “unacceptable risk” to U.S. national security and the safety of Americans. Fox News Digital’s Landon Mion contributed to this report.
DHS official rips Kilmar Abrego Garcia for ‘making TikToks’ while agency faces gag order
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin on Saturday took aim at Kilmar Abrego Garcia for “making TikToks” while DHS remains constrained by an “activist judge.” McLaughlin was reacting to a minute-long video that appears to show Abrego Garcia, an El Salvadoran illegal immigrant who became a flashpoint in the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign, filming himself lip-syncing to a song in Spanish. “So we, at [DHS], are under gag order by an activist judge and Kilmar Abrego Garcia is making TikToks,” McLaughlin wrote. “American justice ceases to function when its arbiters silence law enforcement and give megaphones to those who oppose our legal system.” JUDGE BLOCKS ICE FROM RE-DETAINING ABREGO GARCIA — BUT SIGNALS RULING COULD COME FAST KILMAR ABREGO GARCIA RELEASED AFTER JUDGE RULES TRUMP ADMIN LACKED VALID REMOVAL ORDER A court order had previously been issued by an Obama-appointed federal judge that restricts DHS and other Trump administration officials from publicly discussing Abrego Garcia’s human smuggling case. That order was later narrowed, according to The Tennessee Star. Abrego Garcia had repeatedly sought to curb public criticism from Trump administration officials, arguing the remarks threaten his right to a fair trial, Politico reported. ABREGO GARCIA RELEASED FROM JAIL, WILL RETURN TO MARYLAND TO AWAIT TRIAL Abrego Garcia’s case has drawn national attention since March, when he was deported to his home country of El Salvador in violation of a 2019 court order and in what Trump officials acknowledge was an “administrative error.” Upon his return to the U.S., Abrego Garcia was immediately taken into federal custody and detained on human smuggling charges from a 2022 traffic stop. The Trump administration has claimed he is a member of MS-13, which Abrego Garcia denies. A federal judge this week canceled Abrego Garcia’s trial and scheduled a hearing to review whether prosecutors pursued the human smuggling charges vindictively, according to The Associated Press. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis on Monday also extended a temporary restraining order preventing the Trump administration from immediately detaining Abrego Garcia again after failing to produce a final removal order. The ruling keeps in place an earlier order that secured his release from ICE custody. DHS and a defense attorney for Abrego Garcia did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano, Breanne Deppisch and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
Walz slammed in wake of viral video that raises daycare funding questions: ‘Needs to be held accountable’
Politicians took to social media Saturday to criticize Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz after a viral video raised questions about a Minneapolis daycare center that allegedly received millions of dollars in state funding despite appearing largely inactive. Responding to an X post highlighting allegations of Somali Medicaid fraud and voter fraud in the state, Vice President JD Vance described the situation as “a microcosm of the immigration fraud in our system.” “Politicians like it because they get power. Welfare cheats like it because they get rich,” Vance wrote. “But it’s a zero sum game, and they’re stealing both money and political power from Minnesotans.” TRUMP CABINET OFFICIAL CALLS ON WALZ TO RESIGN OVER MASSIVE FRAUD SCANDAL IN SCATHING LETTER: ‘SHAME ON YOU’ Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., demanded Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz be “held accountable.” “Folks need to be arrested and prosecuted and the Governor of Minnesota needs to be held accountable,” Lawler posted to X on Saturday. “Congress should hold a hearing immediately and start getting answers.” A 42-minute video posted to X and YouTube on Friday by independent reporter Nick Shirley shows Shirley and another man visiting several childcare centers in the blue state, including a location on Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis. The footage shows no visible activity at the site, which displays a misspelled sign that says “Quality Learing Center,” even though the center is reportedly supposed to account for 99 children and received roughly $4 million in state funds. HHS PROBES MINNESOTA’S USE OF BILLIONS IN FEDERAL SOCIAL SERVICE FUNDS AMID FRAUD CONCERNS: REPORT Several other high-profile figures also weighed in on Shirley’s video Saturday. Donald Trump Jr. wrote on X, “If you haven’t watched this yet. Watch it. All of it. Understand that this is what journalists are supposed to do, but no one in the mainstream media will even bother to look let alone actually publish it. This is what they’re doing to your country with your tax dollars!!!” Elon Musk shared similar concerns, accusing the “radical left” of exploiting government programs to bring in and retain immigrants to “win elections and turn America into a single-party state.” MINNESOTA SENATE CANDIDATE WEARS HIJAB IN VISIT TO SOMALI MARKET AS FRAUD SCANDAL UNFOLDS “The more you look at it, the more you will be horrified at what your tax money is doing and the fact that, if this is not reversed, your vote will mean nothing,” Musk posted to X. “The most obvious case example is the Somali voting bloc in Minnesota, a state that historically had zero Somalis, electing Ilhan Omar to the US Congress.” A day earlier, Musk posted, “Prosecute [Tim Walz].” The video went viral this week amid the burgeoning scandal enveloping the Walz administration that notably included at least $1 billion lost to alleged social services fraud largely tied to the Somali community in the Twin Cities. A portion reportedly ended up in the hands of the Somali terror group Al-Shabab. Lawler and Walz did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. Fox News Digital’s Charles Creitz contributed to this report.
Affordability: The issue that boosted Trump and Republicans in 2024 deflated them in 2025
The economy, the issue that hurt Democrats in the 2024 elections, gave them a major boost in this year’s ballot box showdowns. “Look, we know what’s important right now,” Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin said in his speech at the DNC’s winter meeting earlier this month. “S‑‑‑ is too expensive.” One year after deep concerns over inflation helped President Donald Trump and Republicans win back the White House and Senate and keep their House majority, Democrats say their decisive victories in last month’s 2025 elections, and their overperformances in special elections and other ballot box showdowns this year were fueled by their laser focus on affordability amid persistent inflation. Democratic Governors Association Executive Director Meghan Meehan-Draper said Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey and Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, who overperformed the public opinion polls as they cruised to double-digit Election Night victories in the blue-leaning states, “stayed laser focused on the economy,” and “talked about it all day, every day.” DOUBLING DOWN: TOP HOUSE DEMOCRAT SAYS FOCUS ON AFFORDABILITY ‘ABSOLUTELY GOING TO CONTINUE’ The issue also fueled one-time longshot far-left candidate Zohran Mamdani to a mayoral victory in New York City as he made cost of living the centerpiece of his campaign. Democrats say they’ll double down on the issue of affordability heading into next year’s midterm elections, as they try to win back congressional majorities from the Republicans. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) chair says Democrats will keep their focus squarely on affordability as they aim to “take back those gavels” by capturing the House majority in next year’s midterm elections. ELECTION REFLECTION: DEMOCRATS ‘FLIPPED THE SCRIPT’ ON AFFORDABILITY House Democrats need to flip just three GOP-held seats in 2026 to win back control of the chamber for the first time in four years. “We’re going to hold Republicans accountable for their policies that are hurting American families,” Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington state, who for a second straight election cycle is chairing the DCCC, told Fox News Digital. DelBene said she’ll keep her focus squarely on affordability as she aims to “take back those gavels.” Pointing to last year’s elections, she said, “That was their [Republicans] big message. They were going to lower costs. It has been a big broken promise, and people are feeling that, and that’s had a big impact and will continue. People want folks who are going to stand up to them for them, not just be blindly loyal to the president.” But GOP Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, chair of the rival National Republican Congressional Committee, highlighted the Republican narrative, as he took aim at former President Joe Biden, telling Fox News Digital, “There are challenges out there with the economy, because Biden broke it, and House Republicans, working with President Trump, are going to fix it, and we’re working very hard to do that. “ CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLL ON TRUMP AND THE ECONOMY It’s an argument that Trump has repeatedly voiced in recent weeks, as he’s pointed fingers at his predecessor for the persistent high costs. “When I took office last January, I inherited a mess, and very simply, I’m fixing it,” Trump said this month. But a recent Fox News national poll was full of apparent warning signs for Trump and the GOP. Three-quarters of voters questioned in the survey viewed the economy negatively, and large numbers of respondents, including Republicans, said their costs for groceries, utilities, healthcare and housing have gone up this year. The poll indicated that voters blame the president, with nearly twice as many pointing fingers at Trump than former President Joe Biden, when asked who is responsible for the current economy. And Trump’s approval rating when it comes to the economy has dropped to record lows in surveys by Fox News and other organizations. While Trump has repeatedly described the Democrats’ focus on affordability as a “hoax,” he has also become more engaged in combating high prices in recent weeks, as the president has scaled back some of his tariffs and pledged to lower high food prices. And Trump this month made stops in two key battlegrounds — Pennsylvania and North Carolina — to tout his efforts to combat high prices. Trump was buoyed this past week by better than expected government reports on inflation and economic growth, and Republicans see better days ahead when it comes to the issue of affordability. Former Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley, the Trump-backed Republican Senate candidate in next year’s race to succeed retiring GOP Sen. Thom Tillis, told Fox News Digital “we’re seeing signs already that the economy is starting to tick up and is starting to take hold as the President’s policies are getting in place.” Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, told Fox News Digital, “2026 is a year of affordability, and the great news is President Trump has been producing time and time again.” Pointing to the tax cut provisions in the GOP’s sweeping domestic policy measure signed into law this past summer by Trump, Scott said “2026 is shaping up to be the year where Donald Trump’s activities, his actions, the legislation we’ve passed, shows up for the American voter. And consumers all across the country will see a more affordable economy because of President Trump and the Senate majority and the House majority in the hands of the Republican Party.” But Martin and the Democrats see it differently. The DNC chair accuses Republicans of not inheriting a “mess — they manufactured it. They took the economy and drove it straight into a ditch. They took certainty and swapped it for chaos.” And Martin predicts Trump and Republicans headed for a ballot box disaster. “Donald Trump has lost the economy, is losing his mind, and is going to lose the midterms,” Martin charged.
2025 shockers: The biggest moments that rocked the campaign trail
It was an off-year when it comes to elections, but 2025 was on fire on the campaign trail as next year’s looming midterm showdowns took shape. While it was never expected to match the intensity of the tumultuous 2024 battles for the White House and Congress, this year’s off-year elections grabbed outsize national attention and served as a key barometer leading up to the 2026 midterm contests for the House and Senate majorities. Here are five of the biggest moments that shaped the campaign trail. Aiming to prevent what happened during his first term in the White House when Democrats reclaimed the House majority in the 2018 midterms, President Donald Trump in June first floated the idea of rare but not unheard of mid-decade congressional redistricting. HERE ARE THE NEXT BATTLEGROUNDS IN REDISTRICTING FIGHT The mission was simple: redraw congressional district maps in red states to pad the GOP’s razor-thin House majority to keep control of the chamber in the 2026 midterms, when the party in power traditionally faces political headwinds and loses seats. Trump’s first target: Texas. A month later, when asked by reporters about his plan to add Republican-leaning House seats across the country, the president said, “Texas will be the biggest one. And that’ll be five.” The push by Trump and his political team triggered a high-stakes redistricting showdown with Democrats to shape the 2026 midterm landscape in the fight for the House majority. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas called a special session of the GOP-dominated state legislature to pass the new map. But Democratic state lawmakers, who broke quorum for two weeks as they fled Texas in a bid to delay the passage of the redistricting bill, energized Democrats across the country. Among those leading the fight against Trump’s redistricting was Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California. California voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 50, a ballot initiative that will temporarily sidetrack the left-leaning state’s nonpartisan redistricting commission and return the power to draw the congressional maps to the Democratic-dominated legislature. That is expected to result in five more Democratic-leaning congressional districts in California, which aimed to counter the move by Texas to redraw their maps. The fight quickly spread beyond Texas and California. Right-tilting Missouri, North Carolina and Ohio have drawn new maps as part of the president’s push. SETTING THE STAGE: WHAT THE 2025 ELECTIONS SIGNAL FOR NEXT YEAR’S MIDTERM SHOWDOWNS Republicans are looking to GOP-controlled Florida, where early redistricting moves are underway in Tallahassee. A new map could possibly produce up to five more right-leaning seats. But conservative Gov. Ron DeSantis and GOP legislative leaders don’t see eye to eye on how to move forward. “We must keep the Majority at all costs,” Trump wrote on social media this month. In blows to Republicans, a Utah district judge this month rejected a congressional district map drawn up by the state’s GOP-dominated legislature and instead approved an alternate that will create a Democratic-leaning district ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. And Republicans in Indiana’s Senate defied Trump, shooting down a redistricting bill that had passed the state House. But Trump scored a big victory when the conservative majority on the Supreme Court greenlighted Texas’ new map. Other states that might step into the redistricting war are Democratic-dominated Illinois and Maryland and two red states with Democratic governors, Kentucky and Kansas. Virginia Democrats were cruising toward convincing victories in the commonwealth’s statewide elections when a scandal sent shock waves up and down the ballot. SHOWDOWN FOR THE HOUSE: DEMOCRATS, REPUBLICANS BRACE FOR HIGH-STAKES MIDTERM CLASH Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones instantly went into crisis mode after controversial texts were first reported by the National Review in early October. Jones acknowledged and apologized for texts he sent in 2022, when he compared then-Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert to mass murderers Adolf Hitler and Pol Pot, adding that if he were given two bullets, he would use both against the GOP lawmaker to shoot him in the head. Jones faced a chorus of calls from Republicans to drop out of the race. And the GOP leveraged the explosive revelations up the ballot, forcing the Democratic Party nominee, former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, back on defense in a campaign where she was seen as the frontrunner against Republican rival Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears. Earle-Sears didn’t waste an opportunity to link Spanberger to Jones. And during October’s chaotic and only gubernatorial debate, where Earle-Sears repeatedly interrupted Spanberger, the GOP gubernatorial nominee called on her Democratic rival to tell Jones to end his attorney general bid. “The comments that Jay Jones made are absolutely abhorrent,” Spanberger said at the debate. But she neither affirmed nor pulled back her support of Jones. KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THE 2025 ELECTIONS While the scandal grabbed national headlines, in the end it didn’t slow down the Democrats. Spanberger crushed Earle-Sears by 15 points. Democrats won the separate election for lieutenant governor by 11 points, and Jones even pulled off a 6-point victory over Republican incumbent Jason Miyares. Just eight days into Trump’s second term in the White House, demoralized Democrats had something to cheer about. Democrat Mike Zimmer defeated Republican Katie Whittington in a special state Senate election in Iowa, flipping a Republican-controlled vacant seat in a district that Trump had carried by 21 points less than three months earlier. Zimmer’s victory triggered a wave of Democrats overperforming in special elections and regularly scheduled off-year ballot box contests. Among the most high profile was the victory by the Democratic candidate in Wisconsin’s high-stakes and expensive state Supreme Court showdown. With inflation, the issue that severely wounded them in the 2024 elections, persisting, Democrats were laser focused on affordability, and the wins kept coming. In November’s regularly scheduled elections, they won the nation’s only two gubernatorial showdowns — in New Jersey and Virginia — by double digits. And they scored major victories in less high-profile contests from coast to coast. The year ended with Democrats winning a mayoral election in Miami, Florida, for the first time in