Main Street Action Joins $50M Battleground Alliance to Flip the House

Main Street Action is bringing a powerful new voice to the 2026 elections: small business owners who are tired of watching Washington wreck their communities and walk away.

Today, Main Street Action announced its role as a grassroots partner in the Battleground Alliance, a $50 million effort to flip control of the U.S. House by organizing in more than 35 key districts. The campaign will focus on places where the GOP’s brutal budget cuts, especially to healthcare, are hitting families hard.

Main Street Action will lead organizing efforts in Wisconsin, Virginia, North Carolina, Iowa, Minnesota, and Michigan, where small business owners are stepping up as trusted messengers and community anchors.

“We’re not here to play pundit. We’re here because Americans can’t afford their meds, the employees of small businesses are losing healthcare coverage, and our communities are barely hanging on,” said Richard Trent, Executive Director of Main Street Action. “Small business owners talk to hundreds of people a week—and when they speak out, people listen. They’re perfectly positioned to ensure politicians can’t hide behind spin while working families pay the price.”

The Battleground Alliance, a coalition of more than 30 labor and grassroots organizations, is tapping directly impacted people to lead this fight—workers, caregivers, immigrants, and small business owners who’ve watched Congress put billionaires and lobbyists ahead of everyday Americans.

Main Street Action’s contribution to the coalition is clear: cutting through the noise with the kind of local credibility no TV ad can buy.

“Small business owners aren’t political insiders—they’re the folks running the coffee shop, the barber shop, the corner store,” said Shawn Phetteplace, National Campaigns Director of Main Street Action. “But we see what these policies do in real life, and we’re done staying quiet. If our Representatives vote to gut Medicaid or reward corporations while the rest of Main Street struggles, we’re gonna make sure every voter knows it.”

With this bold new partnership, Main Street Action is doubling down on what they do best: turning the voices of everyday entrepreneurs into political power. By organizing in the communities where small businesses are most vital and most vulnerable. Main Street Action is not just fighting for votes, they are fighting for a future where working families shape our democracy.