Elections This Week Finally Bring Positive Outcomes for Democrats
While some Democrats are wary of overinterpreting the results, it marks the first positive development they've encountered in quite some time.
TroibNews 
For a party that has struggled recently, Democrats are demonstrating some renewed vitality within just 24 hours.
On Tuesday, Iowa Democrats achieved an upset victory in a state Senate district that Donald Trump had carried by over 20 points, while Minnesota Democrats reclaimed their Senate majority in the statehouse. Concurrently, congressional Democrats, who had been on the defensive since Trump's return to office, united to denounce the administration's significant freeze on federal assistance — marking their first coordinated message since Trump took office.
By Wednesday, the Trump administration reversed the freeze, prompting Democrats to celebrate for the first time since November’s elections.
“I haven’t seen people so aroused in a very, very long time,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer remarked during a press conference on Wednesday.
Even among Democrats, there was some hesitancy to draw too many conclusions from the White House's reversal of the spending freeze or the party's victories in the Midwest. Trump remains influential in Washington, supported by a network of MAGA-endorsed appointees and a Republican-controlled Congress. While the Iowa victory was unexpected, the Minnesota win was largely anticipated. Nonetheless, for Democrats still reeling from significant losses in the 2024 elections, these recent events offered a glimmer of optimism.
“It’s a bit of positive news in a sea of negativity [and] Democrats are eager for any positive news,” said Iowa state Rep. J.D. Scholten, who represents parts of rural northwest Iowa, similar to the state Senate seat that switched from red to blue on Tuesday night. “I don’t think we can base our whole 2026 plan off of one special election, but at the same time, it’s a good feeling.”
Following the Trump administration's two-sentence memo rescinding the federal freeze, Waleed Shahid, a progressive Democratic operative, described the Democrats' response as a guide for “how to beat Flood the Zone” — advising to “pick your fights and press where it counts,” he posted on X.
“Their overreach hit a Democratic intersection — legal pushback, constituent pressure and service providers turning up the heat on Congressional Democrats, and a media lane to drive a working-class populist message,” Shahid elaborated in an interview. “There does seem to be more excitement in Democrats being an opposition party than one focused on bipartisanship and capitulation.”
During a private conference call with lawmakers on Wednesday afternoon, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries informed them that their pressure campaign had succeeded and the rescinded order was a win — but he urged them to continue the effort as the caucus initiated an “all hands on deck effort,” according to five individuals familiar with the call.
Leaders from the House Appropriations Committee, Oversight, and the caucus messaging arm shared strategies for pushing back against Trump.
Their messaging team encouraged lawmakers to host news conferences with local officials to highlight the effects of the spending freeze and to create social media videos about the issue. The caucus also organized a “Stop The Republican Rip Off Day of Action” on Thursday — still set to proceed after the order’s reversal — to discuss with constituents “how the Republican agenda will hurt working people to reward the wealthy and well-connected,” according to guidance obtained by PMG.
The Iowa special election — prompted by then-state Sen. Chris Cournoyer's resignation to take on the role of the state’s lieutenant governor — provided an unforeseen boost for Democrats. Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart stated that it demonstrated the party “can win in rural Iowa,” while the Democratic National Committee labeled it an “earthquake.”
However, some Iowan political experts advised a more cautious interpretation of the results, considering the small sample size. In recent years, Democrats have tended to perform better among more engaged voters who are significantly more likely to participate in special elections and midterms, implying that extrapolating these results to larger contests could be misleading.
“Don’t overread here,” advised Norm Sterzenbach, a veteran Iowa Democratic consultant. Yet, analyzing the outcome, Sterzenbach pointed to positive trends for Democrats: Mike Zimmer, the Democratic candidate, outperformed expectations in the Quad Cities—a key area Democrats need to regain to strengthen their position in the state—by running a localized campaign.
Zimmer “ran on his own background as a teacher, kept it local, not about Trump, not about stuff in Washington, and as much as there’s an urge to react to the news of the day, their campaign didn’t,” remarked Sterzenbach. “If there’s a lesson, it’s keep it local, don’t get caught up in Trump and Washington.”
Republicans largely interpreted Zimmer’s victory—and the subsequent Democratic enthusiasm on social media—as an indication of how challenging the landscape is for Democrats nationwide. Adam Kincaid, president of the National Republican Redistricting Trust, asserted it was evidence that “they’re grasping at straws” since “it’s a special election in late January in Iowa, so it’s silly to read too much into it.”
Kincaid did, however, warn Republicans that there are essential lessons for the party to learn from this Iowa upset. “We need good candidates, and we have to turn out Trump voters when President Trump is not on the ballot,” he stated.
“Republicans used to have a really solid midterm coalition and Democrats were the ones who would struggle to turn out their voters in midterms, and I think that’s changed,” Kincaid observed. “Figuring out how to get our low-propensity voters to show up is the challenge we have for the next 18 months.”
Daniella Diaz contributed to this report.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
On Tuesday, Iowa Democrats achieved an upset victory in a state Senate district that Donald Trump had carried by over 20 points, while Minnesota Democrats reclaimed their Senate majority in the statehouse. Concurrently, congressional Democrats, who had been on the defensive since Trump's return to office, united to denounce the administration's significant freeze on federal assistance — marking their first coordinated message since Trump took office.
By Wednesday, the Trump administration reversed the freeze, prompting Democrats to celebrate for the first time since November’s elections.
“I haven’t seen people so aroused in a very, very long time,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer remarked during a press conference on Wednesday.
Even among Democrats, there was some hesitancy to draw too many conclusions from the White House's reversal of the spending freeze or the party's victories in the Midwest. Trump remains influential in Washington, supported by a network of MAGA-endorsed appointees and a Republican-controlled Congress. While the Iowa victory was unexpected, the Minnesota win was largely anticipated. Nonetheless, for Democrats still reeling from significant losses in the 2024 elections, these recent events offered a glimmer of optimism.
“It’s a bit of positive news in a sea of negativity [and] Democrats are eager for any positive news,” said Iowa state Rep. J.D. Scholten, who represents parts of rural northwest Iowa, similar to the state Senate seat that switched from red to blue on Tuesday night. “I don’t think we can base our whole 2026 plan off of one special election, but at the same time, it’s a good feeling.”
Following the Trump administration's two-sentence memo rescinding the federal freeze, Waleed Shahid, a progressive Democratic operative, described the Democrats' response as a guide for “how to beat Flood the Zone” — advising to “pick your fights and press where it counts,” he posted on X.
“Their overreach hit a Democratic intersection — legal pushback, constituent pressure and service providers turning up the heat on Congressional Democrats, and a media lane to drive a working-class populist message,” Shahid elaborated in an interview. “There does seem to be more excitement in Democrats being an opposition party than one focused on bipartisanship and capitulation.”
During a private conference call with lawmakers on Wednesday afternoon, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries informed them that their pressure campaign had succeeded and the rescinded order was a win — but he urged them to continue the effort as the caucus initiated an “all hands on deck effort,” according to five individuals familiar with the call.
Leaders from the House Appropriations Committee, Oversight, and the caucus messaging arm shared strategies for pushing back against Trump.
Their messaging team encouraged lawmakers to host news conferences with local officials to highlight the effects of the spending freeze and to create social media videos about the issue. The caucus also organized a “Stop The Republican Rip Off Day of Action” on Thursday — still set to proceed after the order’s reversal — to discuss with constituents “how the Republican agenda will hurt working people to reward the wealthy and well-connected,” according to guidance obtained by PMG.
The Iowa special election — prompted by then-state Sen. Chris Cournoyer's resignation to take on the role of the state’s lieutenant governor — provided an unforeseen boost for Democrats. Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart stated that it demonstrated the party “can win in rural Iowa,” while the Democratic National Committee labeled it an “earthquake.”
However, some Iowan political experts advised a more cautious interpretation of the results, considering the small sample size. In recent years, Democrats have tended to perform better among more engaged voters who are significantly more likely to participate in special elections and midterms, implying that extrapolating these results to larger contests could be misleading.
“Don’t overread here,” advised Norm Sterzenbach, a veteran Iowa Democratic consultant. Yet, analyzing the outcome, Sterzenbach pointed to positive trends for Democrats: Mike Zimmer, the Democratic candidate, outperformed expectations in the Quad Cities—a key area Democrats need to regain to strengthen their position in the state—by running a localized campaign.
Zimmer “ran on his own background as a teacher, kept it local, not about Trump, not about stuff in Washington, and as much as there’s an urge to react to the news of the day, their campaign didn’t,” remarked Sterzenbach. “If there’s a lesson, it’s keep it local, don’t get caught up in Trump and Washington.”
Republicans largely interpreted Zimmer’s victory—and the subsequent Democratic enthusiasm on social media—as an indication of how challenging the landscape is for Democrats nationwide. Adam Kincaid, president of the National Republican Redistricting Trust, asserted it was evidence that “they’re grasping at straws” since “it’s a special election in late January in Iowa, so it’s silly to read too much into it.”
Kincaid did, however, warn Republicans that there are essential lessons for the party to learn from this Iowa upset. “We need good candidates, and we have to turn out Trump voters when President Trump is not on the ballot,” he stated.
“Republicans used to have a really solid midterm coalition and Democrats were the ones who would struggle to turn out their voters in midterms, and I think that’s changed,” Kincaid observed. “Figuring out how to get our low-propensity voters to show up is the challenge we have for the next 18 months.”
Daniella Diaz contributed to this report.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
