Politics · United States · 4 hrs ago
Progressive Democrats win, but often trail moderates in 2026 midterms
In the 2026 US midterms, progressive Democrats won several competitive races, including Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and candidates affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America.
But many left-wing candidates performed worse than more moderate Democrats on the same ballots or in comparable races.
In key Senate contests, four candidates backed by Senator Bernie Sanders were among the party's weakest performers compared with Kamala Harris's 2024 results in their states.
By contrast, some moderate candidates, including Roy Cooper in North Carolina and Adam Hamilton in Kansas, ran much further ahead of Harris's 2024 margins.
The results suggest moderate candidates often did better in competitive areas, though progressive candidates also won and some candidates with left-wing backgrounds campaigned as moderates.
Democrats may now weigh whether nominating more moderate candidates could help them win swing seats and states in less favorable election years.
Democrats won the 2026 midterms, but progressive candidates often ran behind more moderate Democrats in key races.
Four Senate candidates aligned with the party’s left flank and endorsed by Bernie Sanders had the four weakest performances relative to Kamala Harris’s 2024 results in key races, according to CNN.
Moderate candidates recorded some of the largest gains over Harris’s 2024 margins, including Roy Cooper in North Carolina and James Talarico in Texas.
Progressives helped put social issues at the center of the campaign, Claire Valdez said, while Le Monde reported that their candidates won by narrower margins than moderates in areas previously held by Republicans.
- Who
- Democratic progressive and moderate candidates in the 2026 midterms.
- What
- Democrats won, but progressives often trailed moderates in performance relative to Kamala Harris’s 2024 results.
- When
- The election was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2026.
- Where
- The United States, including Senate races in Michigan, Maine, Minnesota and Florida.
- Why
- Le Monde said progressives made social issues central to the campaign; the sources do not establish why their candidates often ran behind moderates.
Progressive Democrats
Moderate Democrats
Relative performance
Progressive Democrats
Progressive candidates won in several competitive races, but often by narrower margins than moderates, according to Le Monde.
Moderate Democrats
Moderate candidates had some of the largest gains over Harris’s 2024 results in key races, CNN reported.
Campaign approach
Progressive Democrats
Claire Valdez said progressives centered an economic agenda on working-class people and addressed ICE and Gaza.
Moderate Democrats
CNN said some candidates with less moderate pasts clearly ran as moderates in 2026.
The midterm election was held, with election-night coverage in Astoria, Queens.
CNN and Le Monde published reports comparing progressive and moderate candidates’ results.
Claire Valdez is due to join Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the House.
- Progressive Senate candidates
- Four Sanders-endorsed candidates had the weakest performances relative to Harris in 2024 among candidates in key races, according to CNN.
- Roy Cooper
- Overperformed Harris by 23.2 points in North Carolina.
- James Talarico
- Overperformed Harris by 25.7 points in Texas.
- Angie Nixon
- Lost the Florida Senate race and overperformed Harris by 10.2 points.
- Claire Valdez
- Due to join the House in January 2027.
3 sources
What people are saying
This blue tsunami is really credit to the progressive and democratic socialist movements of the last few years
In 2024, we saw a real vacuum of leadership, we saw the rise of [Donald] Trump, and we stepped into that void.
We talked about an economic agenda that centered working-class people, that was morally consistent on ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement], on Gaza and the genocide.
Posts on X
DSA candidates and Blue Dogs both beat the Democratic Party average last night. Edge is small esp. once you add controls for demographics and other candidate characteristics (e.g., anybody would have crushed Paxton; Collins would have done well against any Maine Dem).