Skip to content
News and updates

News and updates

What Comes Next?

Posted on

In January, Democrats will control both chambers of Congress, significantly expanding their ability to conduct oversight and shape legislative priorities.

Democrats across the country have campaigned to victory on promises of bringing down the cost of living, reversing Medicaid cuts and restoring ACA subsidies, addressing tariffs, and stopping the war in Iran. It’s important to note that with Trump still in office, major legislation will be difficult to pass through a veto-proof majority. However, it sets Democrats up with considerable leverage to push Republicans to address broadly popular issues (like lowering fuel prices) or, put them on record as voting against it.

With Democrats back in the majority, several members of the Washington state congressional delegation, who currently serve as ranking members on their committees, are expected to be stepping into significant new roles. While not confirmed officially, below are potential changes that could happen within the delegation:

  • Senator Patty Murray is expected to become Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, the powerful committee in charge of writing the annual federal funding legislation.
  • Senator Maria Cantwell is expected to become Chair of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee.
  • Rep. Adam Smith is expected to become Chair of the House Armed Services Committee.
  • Rep. Rick Larsen is expected to become Chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
  • Rep. Pramila Jayapal is expected to become Chair of the Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement subcommittee within the House Judiciary committee.

Several other House members have opportunities to gain subcommittee leadership positions.

What do these changes mean?

Committee leadership comes with significant power and authority. Chairs have responsibility to set hearing schedules, determine markup of bills, lead oversight investigations into federal agencies and administrations, and have significant control over general committee staff, resources, and negotiations. These changes position Washington’s Members of Congress in an influential position on a wide range of issues.

When will we officially know new leadership positions?

Congressional Democrats will begin organizing their caucuses and selecting leadership positions between now and the end of December through various processes. On January 3, the 120th Congress begins and the new leadership will take effect.

Democrats Flip House and Senate to Gain Control of Congress

Posted on

In a night of stunning upsets, Democrats swept the midterms, winning back the House and Senate, dramatically shifting the balance of power in Washington D.C., and delivering victories across the country in a clear rebuke to President Trump’s administration.

Democrats outperformed their wildest expectations, flipping seats that have been red for decades. Winning back the House by larger margins than expected, the real surprise of the night was a historic blue wave in the Senate, as Democrats flipped seats in Maine, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas.

With votes still being counted, the Democrats are on track to win the national House popular vote by 13 percentage points, the largest popular victory in the national congressional vote for either party in 50 years. Ballots are still being counted in Alaska, a key Senate battleground state, and in Mississippi, a race that has emerged as an unlikely tossup, leaving Democrats on track to win 54 to 56 seats.

Democrats won despite Republican gerrymandering efforts that sought to pick up House seats with redrawn district maps in seven states, a massive Republican spending advantage, and President Trump hand-picking several candidates in key elections.

Stay tuned for more analysis and updates.

 

How do the results change Washington’s Congressional Delegation? 

House races have been called for Washington Reps. Suzan DelBene, Rick Larsen, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, Emily Randall, Pramila Jayapal, Kim Schrier, Adam Smith, and Marilyn Strickland, who will all return for another term. The race has not been called for District 5, where Rep. Michael Baumgartner is running against Democratic challenger Carmela Conroy. In District 4, Republican Amanda McKinney appears likely to win retiring Rep. Dan Newhouse’s seat.

 

Election Day

Posted on

Happy Election Day. Voters are headed to the polls today to wrap up a heated midterms election cycle. On the federal level, the results will determine control of Congress for the last two years of President Trump’s final term.

Follow New York Times live coverage here: 2026 Midterm Elections Live Updates.

While polls close tonight, the number of competitive races means that we may not know which party has won control until tomorrow, or even later in the week. Control of the Senate in particular hinges on a small number of battleground races, including the six tossup states of Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Ohio, and Texas.

What we’re tracking:

  • Georgia and South Carolina are among the earliest polls to close, at 7pm Eastern. Georgia’s Senate race leans Democratic and South Carolina’s race leans Republican. If either of these flip, control of the Senate looks less likely for the losing party.
  • Former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown is polling a handful of points ahead in Ohio as he competes for the Senate seat once filled by Vice President JD Vance.
  • Former Democratic Governor Roy Cooper has surged ahead in polls and Republicans have pulled back campaign spending in North Carolina, making it a likely pickup seat for Democrats.
  • Arguably the most closely watched battleground races are in Maine, Michigan, and Texas.
  • Iowa and Kansas both have popular moderate Democrats running. Iowa is polling as a tossup, and in Kansas, Republican Senator Roger Marshall is facing a serious challenge from Adam Hamilton. Both would be significant wins for the Democrats.
  • Alaska has the last polls to close, at 1am Eastern. Former Representative Mary Peltola is running against Republican Senator Dan Sullivan. Alaska counts votes slowly due to a large number of mail-in ballots. If control of the Senate depends on Alaska’s results, we may not know the outcome for over a week.

Midterms Countdown Begins

Posted on

Campaigns around the country are in the final sprint with seven days to go before Election Day. With all of the House and a third of the Senate up for re-election, the results will shape the final two years of Trump’s second term.

Polling suggests Democrats will gain wins nationwide, but this race has an unusual number of tossups, especially considering recent redistricting efforts. Republicans also have a considerable financial advantage, outspending Democrats in what is shaping up to be the most expensive election cycle in U.S. history.

In Congress, the House is expected to flip, but the margin could be close. Flipping the Senate was once seen as a long shot, but several unexpected Senate races have narrowed over the last few months. To win back the Senate, Democrats need to protect all their current seats and flip four Republican-held ones.

Races to watch:

In Washington state, all House members are running for re-election, apart from Rep. Dan Newhouse who is retiring. Read more on the Washington state primaries here.

Washington’s District 3 has drawn national attention for being a key battleground district which could determine control of the House. Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez is running for reelection for the seat that she first narrowly flipped in 2022. State Sen. John Braun has President Trump’s endorsement and will be competing against Gluesenkamp Perez in a district that Trump won in 2024. Last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson visited Chehalis to campaign with Braun.

 

Stay tuned for live updates on Election Day results and analysis on how the outcomes will shape Congress.

NSF Acting Director Announces Plans to Leave the Agency

Posted on

National Science Foundation Acting Director Brian Stone and Acting Chief of Staff Rebecca Keiser will leave the NSF, according to an internal agency staff memo that was released today. Stone plans to leave at the end of the year and Keiser at the end of the month. The last time the NSF had a Senate-confirmed director was April 2025, before Sethuraman Panchanathan resigned as grant terminations expanded in the first few months of the Trump administration. Since then, Acting Director Stone has guided the agency through a tumultuous period with thousands of grant terminations, firing of the National Science Board, and OMB changes.

President Trump’s nomination of Jim O’Neill to be the next director has been stalled since March. Without a Senate-confirmed director, many have argued that the NSF has been directly managed by the White House and OMB.