U.S. Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) in Dallas, Texas, U.S., September 9, 2026. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak
According to many polls, Democratic candidates are performing surprisingly well in states that Donald Trump won in 2024 — including Texas, Iowa, Kansas, Alaska and Ohio. And GOP strategists, Politico reports, are taking this Democratic surge seriously.
In Politico, Meredith Lee Hill, Erin Doherty, Jessica Piper and Andrew Howard explain, "Republicans are playing defense deep in their own territory as voter anger over price hikes puts more House and Senate seats in play in the midterms. New rounds of big spending, visits from Trump administration officials and private conversations among top GOP officials overseeing the battle for control of Congress reveal a party rushing to shore up red seats and states President Donald Trump won handily in 2024."
The Politico reporters continue, "In the House, the fight has expanded far outside the few-dozen seats considered the most competitive as Republicans start to unleash their massive war chest: Since August 1, more than $110 million in ad bookings have gone toward Republican-held districts so red that Trump won them by double digits. In the Senate, Republicans are racing to shore up Ohio GOP Sen. Jon Husted as the Midwest struggles under the weight of Trump's tariffs and high diesel prices. Trump and Vice President JD Vance are both expected to travel to the state before the midterms to boost Husted, according to four people familiar with the matter who were granted anonymity to discuss not-yet-public plans."
GOP strategists, according to Hill, Doherty, Piper and Howard, have "quietly begun deprioritizing Georgia and even North Carolina, which a growing number of Republicans are privately bracing for Democrats to flip." And the Republican insiders interviewed by Politico made it clear that they aren't taking Democratic gains in red states lightly.
A senior Republican official, interviewed on condition of anonymity, told Politico, "We need to stop the contagion." And a GOP pollster, also quoted anonymously, told the publication that for Democrats, "The map is hilariously big right now."
But GOP strategist Mark Bednarm notes that Republicans still have an "advantage" when it comes to fundraising.
Bednar told Politico, "The voter enthusiasm (for Republican voters) is not where it needs to be, but that's where a money advantage can make a really big impact."
GOP insiders, according to Hill, Doherty, Piper and Howard, are "still bullish about Maine, Michigan and New Hampshire" but are "not as optimistic about North Carolina" and are "concerned about Alaska and Texas."
A GOP strategist told Politico, "As more races come online, it very clearly is a defensive map for Republicans across the country."
