David Weigel
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Covering politics for @semafor. Alum: @washingtonpost, @business, @slate. daveweigel@gmail.com. Buy my book: tinyurl.com/h7wyg2c
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Articles by David Weigel
View / How the MAGA map cracked Original
The News It’s easy to understand why Republicans couldn’t imagine the Trump coalition cracking. The MAGA electoral map, first built in 2016, stayed mostly intact for eight years and five elections. Rural areas stayed red or got redder. Non-white, working class areas drifted away from Democrats. The party of the New Deal was reduced to an urban and suburban archipelago, blue smudges on a red map that the president liked to show off to White House visitors.
Progressives confront their limited leverage as they take on Democratic leaders Original
The News By Corbin Trent’s estimate, he’s spending 15 hours a day on a cause that has animated the left ever since Democrats won huge majorities in the House and Senate: urging them to dump their leaders. Trent, a former spokesman for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, has some well-known allies in his long-shot campaign to oust Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
Democratic swing state winners promise moderation Original
The News READING, Pa. — A few days before he won re-election by 22 points, Gov. Josh Shapiro was barely mentioning his Republican opponent anymore. He’d share his stages with local Democratic candidates, ask for a Democratic majority in the state Senate, and explain what it could do. “I’m going to the good people of Pennsylvania, saying: I want to raise your minimum wage,” Shapiro told Semafor. “I want to have a big housing and critical infrastructure fund.
View / Trump’s politics meet reality Original
David’s view Late on Tuesday night, after he left the victory party for Senator-Elect Annie Andrews, former South Carolina Democratic Party Chairman Jaime Harrison called to reflect on what just happened. Harrison ran against Sen. Lindsey Graham in 2020, and raised more money than any Democrat in the state’s history. He lost by 10 points. Joe Biden tapped him to run the Democratic National Committee, for what both men hoped would be the presidency that ended the MAGA era.
Massive blue wave hands Congress to Democrats
Liberal View 3 hours ago A massive blue wave just hit America. Here’s what it could bring next. Vox - Andrew Prokop and Benjy Sarlin • 3h Democrats won bigger than practically anybody expected Tuesday, and the post-Trump political era is here. Voters just ushered the United States into the post-Trump era.
Republicans underperform as first midterm votes are counted Original
The first midterm votes counted on Tuesday night suggest a tough night for Republicans, in line with polling that has put Democrats well ahead in the battle for Congress on the strength of public frustration with President Donald Trump’s agenda. In Indiana and Kentucky, where most polls closed at 6 pm ET, Democrats ran well ahead of their early vote totals two years ago.
View / Democrats weigh ‘lawfare’ against Trump Original
David’s view Before there was the other Dan Sullivan, there was the other Mike Doyle. Four years ago, when longtime Pittsburgh Democrat Mike Doyle retired from Congress, a left-wing legislator named Summer Lee won the primary to replace him. Republicans nominated a local politician from the suburbs to face her who had a fortuitous name: Mike Doyle. Some voters were perplexed.
‘Dumbfounded’: Democrats’ chaos in Michigan exposes party’s divides Original
The News Democratic party leaders have found themselves unable to stave off an embarrassing schism in Michigan’s must-win Senate race, a crisis that may offer a glimpse of internal battles to come. Days of frantic shuttle diplomacy and attempts to organize a joint appearance by erstwhile Senate primary rivals Abdul El-Sayed and Rep. Haley Stevens culminated in Stevens’ surprise Sunday endorsement of Republican nominee Mike Rogers.
Exclusive / Shapiro eyes minimum wage hike if Democrats sweep Pennsylvania Original
READING, Penn. — Both parties expect Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro to win re-election next week, and he’s barnstorming his state to give his party a governing trifecta for the first time in 34 years. Shapiro told Semafor that he’ll be focused on passing a few specific items if his party wins full control of the government — not a parade of progressive bills, as Democrats in some swing states have done after winning the legislature.
🟡 Semafor Americana: Epstein’s shadow | Semafor
In this edition: Billionaire-bashing makes a comeback, unpredictable ads drop left and right, and to͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌   YUMA, AZ  UNIVERSAL CITY, TX  DES MOINES, IA October 28, 2026   Sign up for our free email briefings→  Today’s Edition UNITE HERE’s strategy Swing-state ad push Jeffries’ red-state swing The final countdown The out-of-nowhere ads PostEmail ↓↓ First Word The day Jeffrey Epstein died, I was at the Iowa State Fair hearing from...
View / Democrats stake their midterm fate on a familiar enemy: Billionaires Original
David’s view The day Jeffrey Epstein died, I was at the Iowa State Fair hearing from presidential candidates, and he was not exactly on their minds. When left-wing podcasters asked 2020 hopefuls if they’d probe the circumstances of the convicted sex offender’s death, a few looked rattled. They’d prepped for so many questions, but not this. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn. was an exception, questioning how a man on suicide watch could hang himself.
Exclusive / El-Sayed’s new ad pitch: Republicans love me Original
Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed’s campaign is launching a new TV ad with a unique approach: spotlighting conservative pundits’ praise for the progressive — and criticism of GOP nominee Mike Rogers. The new ad will get a six-figure buy, according to details shared first with Semafor.
Manchin, Ocasio-Cortez deliver Maine Senate closing arguments Original
The News NORWAY, Maine – Susan Collins and Joe Manchin arrived right on time – Maine’s Republican senator and West Virginia’s last Democratic senator, in matching red fleece, making a cheerful Wednesday stop a New Balance factory. Collins celebrated how she’d helped the “best shoemakers in the world” ink a deal with the Pentagon: “For years, we have argued that our American troops should wear American-made athletic shoes.” Manchin celebrated Collins. “She is the soul of the senate,” said Manchin.
Exclusive / Manchin suggests Collins should become independent
NORWAY, Maine — Former West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin thinks Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, should follow in his footsteps by leaving her party to become an independent. “She has to come to that conclusion, but she is independent,” Manchin, a former Democrat, told Semafor after joining Collins this week on a tour of a New Balance shoe factory in Maine. “She’s as independent as any Republican is up there.
View / What the GOP activist who confronted El-Sayed really got wrong Original
David’s view If Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan’s Senate race next month, the Saturday clip of him admonishing a GOP activist about freedom of religion will achieve legendary status in his party. “It’s you who need to understand the Constitution, not me,” El-Sayed told Thomas Teepell during an appearance in the small Michigan city of Caro. The candidate accepted Teepell’s challenge to “disavow the Muslim Brotherhood,” then denounced the “dual loyalty” smear it seemed like the activist wanted to make.
Why Democrats are pushing their donors to care more about state legislative races Original
The News YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — John Boccieri’s tour through northeast Ohio politics is a microcosm of the Democratic Party’s decline, especially in state legislatures. In 2008, Boccieri left his seat in the Ohio state Senate to flip a Republican-held House seat. He lost it in the 2010 GOP wave, which gave the party control over redistricting and put his old district out of reach. Democrats appointed him to a safe state House seat in 2015, though he left it to run for state Senate in 2018.
Why Democrats are pushing their donors to care more about state legislative races
11 hours ago All eyes are on Maine's Senate race as the challenger, Troy Jackson, seeks to unseat the Republican incumbent and move the Senate toward a Democratic majority. Collins, who has taken more than 10,000 consecutive votes on the Senate floor, says there’s still more she wants to do.
Democrats face Gaza litmus test Original
The News FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — In a matter of weeks, when the midterm results are tallied and the next campaign begins, Democrats with presidential dreams know the question will be coming. Do Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute genocide? The question flew at Democrats all year. Progressives generally said “yes.” Pro-Israel Democrats said “no.” Many rejected the idea that they had to use that word or were otherwise endorsing every action taken by the Jewish state.
View / Trump returns to Ohio as Democrats try to claw back his advantage
David’s view YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Toward the end of Monday night’s MAGA rally, after Jon Husted heard Donald Trump compliment his jawline and his “ass,” he thanked the president for making Ohio so much easier for Republicans to win. “The Youngstown area, for decades, used to vote Democrat,” the Republican senator said.
Trump returns to Ohio as Democrats try to claw back his advantage
David's view YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Toward the end of Monday night's MAGA rally, after Jon Husted heard Donald Trump compliment his jawline and his "ass," he thanked the president for making Ohio so much easier for Republicans to win. "The Youngstown area, for decades, used to vote Democrat," the Republican senator said.
View / The five takes that will define this midterm campaign Original
David’s view Prick up your ears, and you can hear it — the sound of many different kinds of Democrats grabbing credit for midterm victories that aren’t official yet. There’s Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, assessing that when (not if) Abdul El-Sayed wins his Senate race in Michigan, the left will “break open the entire political calculus in America” — i.e., that progressives like them can win the Midwest.
Is ‘abundance’ really dead? Original
The News Whatever happened to “abundance,” the pro-growth movement that many Democrats were going to hitch a ride on this election cycle? They did embrace its ideas. They just don’t use the “a-word” that much. In ads and across swing districts, Democrats are running on having “built more affordable housing,” supported “all-of-the-above energy,” and sliced through “bureaucracy and red tape” without mentioning “abundance” at all.
View: The five takes that will define this midterm campaign
Disability Community 1 hour ago Suicidal ICE Detainees Routinely Put in Solitary… solitarywatch.org - Natalie Villanueva • 1h New this week from Solitary Watch:This month’s edition of “The Word from Solitary Watch,” a series of dispatches from Solitary Watch staff and … Abdul El-Sayed 8 hours ago 'Medicare for All' message attracts midterm voters buckling under medical bills NPR - Kate Wells • 8h Christina Starks-Clay doesn't know how "Medicare for All" would work exactly, but she's willing...
View / Midterm elegy Original
David’s view If the vice president delivers a campaign speech, does it make a sound? One irony of modern elections, when everything a politician says behind a microphone is livestreamed, is that few of his words get heard outside the room. Since the Republicans’ midterm convention, which didn’t give their party its hoped-for boost, the frontrunner for the next GOP nomination has headlined four rallies for red state Republicans – in Iowa, North Carolina, Texas, and Florida.
View / How Democrats learned to stop worrying about gender politics Original
David’s view As they prepared for Republicans to drop another billion dollars of ads on their heads this summer, Democrats passed around fresh advice on gender politics.
What crypto taught Democrats about the AI backlash Original
David’s view If you don’t appreciate how quickly Democrats are entering attack mode against AI, just count the groups they’ve started since our last edition alone.
Exclusive / Researchers probe how Democrats could win working-class voters Original
Democrats need to employ more populist rhetoric, run candidates perceived as non-elite, and steer away from progressive rhetoric like “abolish ICE” if they want to capture more working-class voters in future elections, according to new data shared first with Semafor. Researchers at the Center for Working-Class Politics talked to 40,000 adults from April to June to determine how Democrats can win more working-class voters without compromising other support.
Republicans’ midterm promise is more populism, and more cash Original
The News DALLAS – Republicans arrived at their first midterm convention ready to sell their wins for “working class” Americans, including hundreds of billions of dollars for tax cuts, refunds, and savings accounts.They left it ready to spend another trillion dollars in direct payments to Americans – if voters are smart enough to re-elect them.
View / Candidates contend with the rise of ‘resurfaced’ old clips Original
David’s view Candidates who think they’ve escaped or explained their pasts keep having to explain comments that “resurface” online, again and again. Video of Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico rejecting “tough on crime” policies in 2020 recently “resurfaced,” according to Fox News.
View / Democrats make the midterms about one big pitch: Lower costs Original
David’s view House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries shared good news with his caucus this week: His Democrats’ bid for a midterm campaign focused on “affordability” is cutting through the noise. According to polling that Jeffries circulated this week, Democrats have fixed a mismatch that looked glaring five months ago.
View: Democrats make the midterms about one big pitch: Lower costs
3 hours ago The conservative justices have separation of powers exactly backwards. In deciding to allow President Trump to proceed with constructing a new ballroom, which Congress has not authorized, at the White House, which Trump does not own, the U.S. Supreme Court invoked the separation of powers. But the …
Markey leads incumbent sweep in Massachusetts Original
The News Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., decisively won his primary on Tuesday, defeating Rep. Seth Moulton on a bad night for insurgent Democratic candidates. Markey, who turned 80 this summer, defeated Moulton across the state, losing to the 47-year-old only in parts of Moulton’s northeast congressional district. “Challenging the establishment and calling for a new generation of leadership isn’t easy, but it is necessary,” Moulton told supporters early in the night.
Markey and other Massachusetts Democrats face primaries Original
Multiple Massachusetts Democrats are facing primary challengers on Tuesday, led by Sen. Ed Markey, who warned voters that replacing him would mean losing a progressive champion and supporter of transgender rights in Washington. “We need universal childcare and Medicare for all,” Markey told supporters in Dorchester at a weekend rally with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., accusing donors to Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., of trying to “steal this election.” Polls show Markey with a substantial lead.
Exclusive / Piker defiant as Democrats turn on him Original
The News “It doesn’t feel great to constantly be berated like this,” said Hasan Piker. By Friday morning, when he caught up with Semafor, the socialist influencer had spent the past week watching Democrats condemn him or distance themselves from his commentary. Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, who he’d campaigned with, promised that he had “no plans” to rally with Piker again.
The year tech started losing
David's view If you're running for office right now, the future is a dangerous place to be. The backlash against hyperscale data centers has converted both Democrats and Republicans into AI skeptics, warning that the industry's rise risks robbing communities of autonomy. The populist rage against Flock and its AI-powered license plate cameras, while smaller in scale, is a growing offshoot of this bipartisan rebellion.
A former Democratic operative on what the party needs to keep from MAGA
The News Not every book by a former "insider" is created equal. "Nothing Left" by Evan Barker is unusually rich and well-timed. Barker was a powerhouse fundraiser for the Democratic Party's left, which meant she was in the room for crucial meetings between its biggest stars, before she got fed up with the movement and voted for President Donald Trump in 2024.
View: The year tech started losing
1 hour ago With litigation moving quickly, a Postal Service regulation implementing Trump’s proposal could still be blocked. WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Wednesday allowed President Donald Trump, at least temporarily, to move forward with his effort to exert federal control over mail-in ballots ahead of the …
Graham keeps her Senate seat, vindicating Trump Original
The News South Carolina Sen. Darline Graham won Tuesday’s primary for a full term, riding President Donald Trump’s endorsement to a narrow victory after a quick special election. “Our victory would not have been possible without you, and we are truly grateful,” Graham said of Trump at her victory party in Columbia.
Exclusive / Michigan state senator was in talks to endorse El-Sayed before Piker flap Original
The News The Democratic nominee for a House seat in Michigan was in talks to endorse his party’s Senate nominee in the state, Abdul El-Sayed, before a flap on Monday over left-wing streamer Hasan Piker derailed those plans, a source familiar with the talks told Semafor. State Sen. Jeremy Moss instead issued a statement on Monday that pointedly declined to back El-Sayed and criticized his association with Piker. The streamer showed an image of Moss onscreen during a broadcast last week.
Exclusive: Michigan state senator was in talks to endorse El-Sayed before Piker flap
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services 5 hours ago US set for largest mass visa revocation in history targeting up to 200,000 foreigners, officials say NPR - The Associated Press • 5h WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is preparing to revoke the business and tourism visas of up to 200,000 foreigners who have applied for or are currently seeking asylum status in the United States.
Norman could add to Trump’s primary losing streak Original
South Carolina Republicans could nominate Rep. Ralph Norman on Tuesday for Senate, denying Sen. Darline Graham six more years in the seat held by her late brother. Graham campaigned with President Donald Trump in Myrtle Beach on Friday, and promised to vote to Lindsey Graham’s right. “On illegal immigration, I’m tougher than he was,” she said. But Norman, a member of the House Freedom Caucus, has benefited from his opponent’s shaky performance in the special election runoff’s only debate.
In Pennsylvania House race, it’s pink heels vs. drag queens Original
The News A fight over drag has broken out in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where Democratic Mayor Paige Cognetti is running for Congress against Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan. It began with a photo of the mayor and a drag queen at the city’s 2025 Pride flag raising. It escalated with the congressman’s opponents rediscovering a charity video of him working out in heels. Republicans were happy to battle it out, pointing out that the images of the congressman in pink were for a breast cancer awareness event.
Republicans scramble to remake their stance on data centers Original
The News As populist pushback builds against the AI industry and data centers that power it, Republicans who have cheered the AI boom are scrambling to find a new identity as middle-ground pragmatists. Instead of a moratorium on building new facilities, a growing number of GOP candidates have called for “guardrails” to protect skeptical communities from unchecked AI growth, as well as the rollback of industry tax breaks.
Another House Republican loser, and three other primary takeaways Original
The News Another Republican congressman got tossed out by his party. Another member of the Democratic Socialists of America won where Democrats weren’t expecting. And a few of the president’s chosen candidates flopped. Very few of Tuesday’s primaries were for seats that will be competitive in November; a special election in California, which couldn’t be called immediately, had no Republicans at all. Know More Republicans cleaned up some messes. Rep.
Nine primary races to watch Original
The News The star of Tuesday’s primaries is President Donald Trump’s adopted home state, where outgoing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis moved to redraw congressional maps. With that, DeSantis fired the starting gun for ambitious Republicans to seek new safe-looking seats, simultaneously retiring Tampa- and Orlando-area Democrats who are now competing for Trump-won districts.
Exclusive / Talarico touts endorsement from man who accused Paxton of stealing his pen Original
James Talarico’s Senate campaign is celebrating an endorsement from an unlikely political figure — a Texas attorney who once accused Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton of stealing his $1,000 Montblanc pen. Joe Joplin’s pen, a gift from his wife, became a source of controversy after he left it in a dish near a courthouse metal detector, after which a security camera captured Paxton picking it up and walking away.
View / Hong’s defeat shows the left evolving further away from 2020 Original
David’s view Over the last few days, as Francesca Hong’s Wisconsin gubernatorial campaign came undone over a tweet condemning the colonialist origins of Thanksgiving, I flashed back to September and a debate between two Democratic strategists. On one side of the Persuasion 2025 stage was Sarah Longwell, a former Republican who’s now publisher of The Bulwark.
Four takeaways from a huge primary Tuesday Original
The News Not every one of Tuesday’s primaries can be called yet, but the big trends are clear. Democratic turnout in these races is smashing through records — not always to the benefit of the left. Elderly Democrats are struggling to convince voters that they deserve just two more years in office, to really fight President Donald Trump this time. And Trump himself can help any Republican get through a primary unless they’ve done something disqualifying to high-information voters. Here’s a breakdown.
Four takeaways from a huge primary Tuesday
John Larson 1 hour ago Crowley defeats Hong in nail-biter Wisconsin governor primary: 5 takeaways The Hill - Caroline Vakil, Julia Mueller • 1h Milwaukee County executive David Crowley emerged the victor in the hard-fought Democratic primary for Wisconsin governor against democratic socialist … John Larson 5 hours ago Rep. John Larson becomes 7th House Democrat to lose primary this year Axios - Andrew Solender • 5h Rep.
Voters head to polls in South Carolina, Wisconsin, Minnesota Original
The News BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — Tests of left-wing energy and President Donald Trump’s endorsement will take place in five states Tuesday, as primary season in the Midwest wraps up. The president has picked favorites in South Carolina, Wisconsin, and Minnesota — helping a senator’s sister (turned senator herself), a Cabinet member’s son-in-law, and a very loyal supporter — but didn’t clear the field.
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