In the News: State Legislative Opportunity and Stakes Have Never Been Clearer

2026 is a historic opportunity for Democrats to flip hundreds of seats, build new majorities, and reshape the balance of power

WASHINGTON — With less than 27 days until the 2026 midterms, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) is making headlines across the country, spotlighting the importance of state legislative races to build Democratic power at all levels of the ballot.

The DLCC leads the national strategy to build and protect power in statehouses. With the organization’s most expansive Target Map in history and a once-in-a-generation political environment, the DLCC is targeting over 500 districts and multiple new majorities, which could lead to some of the longest-lasting consequences of the 2026 election. State legislatures decide everything from redistricting to election governing to civil rights – and the stakes of the 2026 midterms couldn’t be higher. 

Read more below:

Washington Post: GOP is at risk of significant state legislative losses, Post analysis finds

• Democrats are on offense. They could break up full Republican control in as many as six states and win unified control in as many as seven of their own, a Washington Post analysis found.
• “2026 is proving to be a once-in-a-generation opportunity for Democrats to shift the balance of power away from Republicans,” Heather Williams, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, the party’s state legislative campaign arm, said in a statement.

Washington Post: Democrats sound the money alarm in a key battleground

• A lot of attention has been paid to how a Democratic wave could lead the party to take back both the House and the Senate. But a true wave election would also be felt at the state level, where Democrats have spent years rebuilding after taking hundreds of losses in legislative races during Barack Obama’s presidency.

• Now, Democrats focused on state legislative races say the environment is right for the party to be competitive in more than 500 legislative districts — and win many of those contests.

• “I expect to see increases in Democratic conferences or caucuses in states across the country. More Democrats in the state legislature. In some cases — in many cases — that will come with hard-power implications, new majorities, new trifectas and broken supermajorities,” [Heather Williams, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee] said.

• Democrats have their eyes on a number of downballot races this year, including in Michigan, where Democrats lost the state House in 2024; Pennsylvania, where they are protecting a one-vote margin in the House; Arizona, where Republicans control both chambers; North Carolina, where the party is working to deny Republicans a supermajority in the General Assembly; and Wisconsin, where Democrats believe they have a shot at a majority in both chambers.

• The worsening environment for Republicans has also given Democrats hope in a number of other states that weren’t considered within reach earlier in the year, such as North Carolina, Georgia and Missouri, said Williams.

Stateline: Democrats could win majority of governor’s offices for first time in 16 years

• Control of legislatures will not only affect state policymaking, but will likely shape the next wave of congressional redistricting, said Will Rusche, vice president of marketing and communications at the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which works to elect Democrats at the state level.
• Rusche said the outcome of November’s governor and legislative races will play a major role in whether Democrats can win back federal power.
• “It all runs through statehouses,” he said. “The majorities we win this year will determine what powers Democrats have, and you know the path to power in Congress and the presidency in 2028 and going forward.”

POLITICO: The 2028 redistricting fight is already kicking off

• “The root of the redistricting conversation starts with state legislators,” said Heather Williams, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. “Absolutely, redistricting is on the ballot.”

Associated Press: A high-stakes fight for state political power heats up, with Trump’s agenda on the line

• Party control of state governments can shape policies on contentious issues including abortion, school choice, data centers and the use of law-enforcement surveillance cameras. In a few states, the electoral outcomes this cycle could also have congressional redistricting implications for 2028.

• “Every election in this moment … potentially is about redistricting,” said Heather Williams, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee.

MeidasTouch: State Democrats Release Top-Ten Races To Watch for November

• “We’re in a situation where there’s huge opportunity, the winds at our back, we’re on the message, meeting voters where they are having real important conversations and dialogue and discussion about what things look like today and what a brighter future could look like,” Williams continued.

• The fall races come after a special election season in the first half of Trump’s term in 2025 and 2026 in which Republicans did not flip a single legislative seat anywhere in the country. That has not happened since redistricting in 2010.

• “I think we remain clear eyed about the hard work in front of us and also, you know, cautiously optimistic of the data, both current and the work that we’ve done this year already with you know, record breaking candidate recruitment, the 31 flips, the huge wins of Virginia, knowing that we’ve got an excellent strategy, meeting voters where they are and this just helps tell that story.”

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) leads the national strategy to secure Democratic power in our state legislatures. We are the campaign arm for more than 3,000 state legislators and thousands of candidates across all 50 states who are advancing Democratic values and standing up to the dangerous MAGA agenda every single day. Over the last decade, our work has flipped 10 new chamber majorities. Those new majorities have ensured Democrats in state legislatures are positioned to protect our democracy and fundamental rights, while addressing the high cost of living and advancing opportunities. The DLCC’s national strategy and target map continue to pinpoint the most efficient paths to Democratic power across all 50 states. 

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