Republicans lost the Cheesecake Factory vote — by a lot

U.S. President Donald Trump attends an event to honor Angel Families at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 23, 2026. REUTERS

RollCall calculated the "Cheesecake Factory vote," that is, counties where there is a Cheesecake Factory and how people who live in those counties voted. Republicans lost the overwhelming majority of those counties.

"In Cheesecake Country, Democrats lead the combined vote (D+28.8) across 141 counties with a Cheesecake Factory," the site said.

Of the 215 Cheesecake Factory locations currently open in 175 different congressional districts, Democrats will represent 171 of them. Meaning Republicans lost the Cheesecake Factory vote. That is up from 108 districts.

The outliers were in Idaho, Utah, Lubbock, Texas, Montgomery County, Texas, Williamson County, Tennessee, Greenville County, South Carolina, parts of Florida, two counties in Ohio and one in Indiana. Everything else went to Democrats.

The reference comes from a moment when former President Barack Obama was in Michigan for a campaign rally, and he mocked President Donald Trump for spending more time on supergluing gold embellishments to the walls of the Oval Office than he did focusing on issues like affordability. He mocked Trump, saying that Trump has "made the White House look like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory." The administration coordinated the whole of government to respond to Obama's insults, the former president observed.

“Classic Obama snobbery. Cheesecake Factory is a great option for people who can’t afford a private chef at their Martha’s Vineyard estate,” posted GOP strategist Matt Whitlock.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who has a net worth of hundreds of millions of dollars, took his photo outside a Cheesecake Factory.

It prompted The Bulwark's Brendan Hartnett to joke, "The whole brouhaha felt like a preposterous relic of an earlier political era—one in which Obama’s choice of suit or salad greens could tie conservative pundits and pols into knots of rage. And now we have some proof of how manufactured the outrage really was."

"House districts with at least one Cheesecake Factory have a median household income of $93,000, while districts bereft of the restaurant have a median household income of $76,000," Hartnett said.

On Election Night, when President Donald Trump and his advisors watched returns, they had the Cheesecake Factory cater the event. Much of it went untouched as the night grew increasingly depressing.

"WH eating good on a big day," Kaelan Dorr, who is a White House staff member, wrote on X. His post included a photo of a takeout bag from the restaurant.

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