2026 Midterm Elections Thread
- Thread starter FAH1223
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I think Vance is severely being underestimated as a candidate. He has an ability to sane wash and intellectualize MAGA in a way even Trump cannot. He's not particularly charismatic, but neither is DeSantis, and I think DeSantis would have been the favorite in 2024 if Trump was not in the picture. Obviously, someone new could crop up in 2028, but who is his competition right now? Unless Tucker or Don Jr. decides to run, I could very easily see him coming out of a contested 2028 primary.
Don De Dieu
Standing in the sun getting black as I want
It's a herculean task for a Black Democratic politician from Milwaukee to win a statewide election. There's a hard bias for most outstate (read: white) Wisconsinites against Milwaukee to begin with, let alone having someone Black be the face of a campaign. Picture a brother, say, from Warrendale trying to sell someone from Howell on voting for him. That's more or less what the deal is here.
Having dealt with and been close enough to Mandela Barnes and David Crowley in a different life (working in political PR), the former got done in by a few things. One, white people on both sides of the aisle like to play dumb that racism didn't play a role. Like, there's no way you'd vote for Tony Evers and split your ticket for an idiot like RoJo if there's a white candidate in that race. That makes no sense. Two, Mandela's messaging was trash, toothless and didn't spell out a compelling reason to vote for him. Three, he was probably too reliant on Milwaukee and Madison carrying him to a victory - but the turnout in Milwaukee wasn't there for him if I recall right. Lastly and most importantly, he simply was outspent until the very end. RoJo is independently wealthy (married into money) and the national Dems didn't come through financially for Mandela until it was too late.
Mandela's the frontrunner in name recognition, but I question if the enthusiasm is there for him and would be a bit nervous if he's the candidate. Good guy, but probably not the right guy. And depending on how you feel about it, I believe he's also taken a good bit of AIPAC money. @MushroomX Crowley's decent, but I feel like the best thing he has going is he's underwritten by Chris Abele. So he'd have long money behind him if he gained any traction. There are things that can work and against him in a campaign as far as his management of Milwaukee County.
Down the line, but not this cycle, the brother from here I'd watch is Chevy Johnson, mayor of Milwaukee. I suspect he wants to take a leap at some point. He's pretty polished, ambitious and most likely would play better outstate (even being from here) than the other two.
Chevy would have jumped into the race if Crowley didn't want to take a run, that was a given.
Don De Dieu
Standing in the sun getting black as I want
Yeah, they're homies. But I think Chevy's the better candidate for higher office. I haven't dealt with him directly since he's been mayor, but recall him being one of the few officials who actually gave a fukk about his constituents. If he stays clean, he's got a job for life (mayor) or a real shot at a higher office with the right funding and messaging.
Do you like any of the Madison folks running?
Not really. Im sure they are likeable, but nothing stands out. If it was Ben Wikler, I would vote for him... but I think he is prepping for a Ron Johnson challenge.
the cac mamba
Veteran
i guess we're all forgetting that Vance wiped the fukkin floor with Tampon Tim, the guy that progressives held up as a beacon of masculinity, and a viable '28 nominee
that was when i knew Vance was legit. he made Walz look like his son
yes, he's a scumbag. but to count him out as the '28 primary winner, with a viable shot at the throne, is ludicrous. he's a good, confident speaker, and he's from ohio
Reality Check
Keepin' it 100
i guess we're all forgetting that Vance wiped the fukkin floor with Tampon Tim, the guy that progressives held up as a beacon of masculinity, and a viable '28 nominee
that was when i knew Vance was legit. he made Walz look like his son
We know you are obsessed with Walz via your unhealthy treh addiction, but Vance falls in the same category as your hero DeSantis: has the charisma of a dead rac00n and cannot connect at all with an independent voter.
the cac mamba
Veteran
this is the part where i ask "who can do this on the left, win the electoral college, gives you a tingly feeling from his charisma, AND pass progressives' purity test"
and you come up totally empty
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the cac mamba
Veteran
and for the record, Deathsantis went from winning by 2 points in 2018, to winning by 20 in 2022, and turned a massive state from purple to dark red
name ONE fukking progressive with a comparable track record. i'd love to hear this
AOC? Bernie?
believe it or not, a lot of voters don't need "charisma"; they can just vote for someone they trust to govern. suburban swing voters aren't teenage girls going to a justin bieber concert
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republicans will vote for Vance. 
That’s a given. Rethugs have 33% locked up no matter what. Can he get the non voter and independents to vote for him is the question.republicans will vote for Vance.
