What a difference a year makes.
In Democratic and Progressive circles, the mood was ecstatic following the trumping (ha ha) by Democratic Candidates and initiatives across the nation yesterday, November 4, 2025.
Reaction to the Democratic, as Blog editor Larry Bodine called it, Blue Tsunami was universal praise in center-left and progressive left circles.
In Arizona, Representative Yassamin Ansari issued several posts commenting on the multiple Democratic victories last night.
On the passage of California’s Proposition 50:
“Don’t say Democrats don’t fight back. As Trump tries to rig our elections, @GavinNewsom and California Dems moved quickly to ensure we pick up 5 Congressional seats in 2026. Landslide win for democracy tonight.”
Below is her post on the Mikie Sherill Gubernatorial victory.
Finally, below is her post following the Zohran Mamdani Mayoral victory in New York:
“I’m overwhelmed with hope tonight. Tears streaming down my face & everything. @ZohranKMamdani
ran a campaign entirely focused on centering the struggles, and most importantly, the dreams of everyday people.His story is the American story. I can’t wait to see all he achieves.”
Representative-Elect Adelita Grijalva focused her comment on last nights election on the Tucson and New York City races, writing:
“From Tucson to New York City, voters are electing champions for working families to city hall. Congrats
@ZohranKMamdani and newly elected City of Tucson Council members Selina Barajas and Miranda Schubert!”
Representative Greg Stanton issued two posts congratulating his two Congressional colleagues, Spanberger and Sherrill:
“Congratulations to my fellow New Democrat and colleague in Congress @MikieSherrill on her victory in New Jersey! Governor-Elect Sherrill is a born leader. Steady under pressure, guided by her values, and relentless in delivering results, New Jersey is in great hands. Good luck!”
“Big night for Democrats & for Virginia! Congrats to my former colleague Abigail Spanberger, now Governor-elect. Abby’s focus, integrity, and grit defined our New Dem class in Congress and now she’s making history as Virginia’s first woman governor. Good luck @SpanbergerForVA!”
Senator Mark Kelly also congratulated both Governor-Elects. Below is his post congratulating Sherrill.
Senator Ruben Gallego posted on the help from Latino Community in the Democratic victories:
“Trump said he’d lower costs and go after the “worst of the worst.” Instead, he drove prices up and started racially profiling us in the streets. Last night, Latinos sent a clear message: enough with the lies and broken promises.”
Commenting to Blog for Arizona, State Democratic House Leader Oscar De Los Santos saw possibilities, based on the Virginia Legislative results, for Democrats in Arizona, offering:
“Last night’s election was a massive repudiation of Republican extremism. There were huge and exciting wins across the country—but I especially want to highlight that Democrats flipped more than 10 seats in the Virginia House. Arizona is next. We’re going to flip the Arizona legislature and re-elect Governor Hobbs, Attorney General Mayes, and Secretary Fontes. Because Americans are sick and tired of the cruelty and chaos. They want leaders who are fighting for working families and the middle class. And that’s what Arizona Democrats are focused on.”
Arizona Democratic Senate Leader Priya Sundareshan echoed De Los Santos, posting:
In an article for her site The Cycle, titled “It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! Nope, it’s a good ole fashioned GOP ass whoopin’!,” Democratic consultant Dr. Rachel Bitecofer wrote:
“…These 2025 off-year elections weren’t random blips; they were the first tremors of the 2026 midterms…Last night, the wave hit and I went to bed happy for the first time in a year…I said both states (New Jersey and Virginia) would break double-digits for Democrats. They did…”
“…Elections are not stand-alone events; they exist in context. Political scientists call it the “midterm effect”: the out-party’s base is fired up, the in-party’s base is complacent, and independents punish whoever holds the White House. Trump’s return to power reset the polarity. Suddenly, it was Democrats who had the energy, the anger, and the permission structure to vote on emotion. That’s negative partisanship — and it’s the single most powerful force in modern American politics…These are bellwethers — early indicators of what’s to come. The 2017 Democratic wave in Virginia foreshadowed the 2018 midterm landslide. The 2025 results are telling us the same story about 2026…”
“…Taken together, last night was the empirical confirmation of what I told you two months ago: Trump’s presidency has re-energized the Democratic coalition, collapsed Republican brand favorability among swing voters, and reignited negative partisanship on the left. If harness by negative partisanship strategy., we could have a 2010 level of midterm effect…”
Third Way Co Founder Matt Bennett praised all the Democratic victories in his post election press release earlier today. However he strongly recommended that the strategic path to a great Democratic victory in 2026 was to follow what Governor-Elects Spanberger and Sherrill did in their campaigns, relaying:
“It was, at long last, a great night for Democrats. The wins everywhere were broad, deep, and meaningful. But now, as we turn toward the midterms, the question is how to interpret those victories. We believe the landslides racked up by the dynamic moderate women running in Virginia and New Jersey should make them the model for Democrats going forward. But a chorus on the left is pointing to Mayor-elect Mamdani’s campaign as the direction for the party, even in places that look nothing like NYC. That’s why we’re issuing a note of caution to Democrats: turning blue places bluer is not that same as moving red and purple our way.
As Playbook featured this morning, here are a few reasons Mamdani-style politics won’t play outside the confines of New York City:
- NYC is an outlier: What sells in Brooklyn, where voters are 22 points more Democratic than the rest of the country, does not sell in the purple and red places we need to win to take back power. Mamdani’s net approval is a bleak -14 nationwide.
- Spanberger and Sherrill massively outperformed Harris. Mamdani did not. A candidate who trailed Harris by 18 points is no model for victory in more contested races.
- As Dems bleed working-class voters, Mamdani relied on a highly educated, high-income electorate to win. Winning 55% of the college-educated vote and only 38% of the working-class vote, it’s clear Mamdani doesn’t hold the keys to winning back the voters who will propel Dems to victory nationwide. Moving toward Mamdani-DSA politics will only make Democrats’ existing deficit with these key voter groups worse.
- Even in a deep blue city, Mamdani tried to run away from the DSA’s most radical ideas. If a “proud DSA member” felt it was imperative to move toward the center to win, there is simply no way a similar candidate could be viable running in an even redder electorate. And Republicans are already weaponizing his DSA ties and their radical platform.
- The far left does not flip swing seats: In the Trump era, far-left candidates have not flipped one single House seat from red to blue. Moderates are the majority makers, flipping 50 red seats since 2018.
The bottom lines: Governors-elect Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill’s victories have pointed the way for Democrats seeking to build majorities. Unfortunately, Mamdani’s policies and politics make that task harder.”
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