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Supporters of Democrat senatorial candidate James Talarico react to early election results during a midterm election night watch party at Long Center for the Performing Arts in Austin, Texas on November 3, 2026.
(Photo by Ronaldo Schemidt / AFP via Getty Images)
Economic and Anti-Establishment Populism Trounces Trump in Historic Blue Tsunami
The real question is this: come January when they control Congress, will Democrats take advantage of the new populism to enact measures most Americans need and want?
Nov 04, 2026
The great sleeping giant of America has awakened, taken a hard look at what’s become of the nation, and roared a thunderous “NO!”
What occurred yesterday was not—as some are saying—the inevitable mid-term swing of the pendulum against the party in power. Texas hasn’t elected a Democratic senator since 1988. The last time Kansas elected a Democratic senator was 1932.
Nor was it just the economy. Americans are unhappy with inflation, but the country is not in a depression or recession. Unemployment remains quite low.
Nor, finally, was it all due to Trump. Despite Trump’s repeated efforts to get voters to “pretend” he was on the ballot, he was not. Most Republican candidates barely mentioned him and many Democratic candidates stressed local or statewide issues rather than fixate on him.
Something much larger is responsible for what occurred: anti-establishment populism. It’s burst forth against the mammoth corporations that have scored record profits while most Americans have had to pay more. Against the mega donors and super PACs that have flooded American politics with more campaign money—legalized bribes—than ever before. And against the Big Tech billionaires who have become the most powerful force in the American economy and society—as well as Trump’s and the Republican Party’s most visible backers.
The irony is that anti-establishment anger propelled Trump into the presidency in 2016 and again in 2024. Many Americans had found his politically-incorrect rants and “America first” nativism to reflect their own anger at being disrespected or left behind. “I am your warrior,” he told supporters when he announced his candidacy for the 2024 election.
But during his second term, Trump has morphed into the very establishment he had railed against. He’s given tax cuts and subsidies to tech billionaires in exchange for their help making him and his family billionaires, too. He’s promoted their AI, pushed their data centers, put Elon Musk in charge of “DOGE,” advocated their crypto, and went to war in the Middle East—not only causing gas prices to soar but making Big Oil billions (or, as Trump bafflingly boasts, “we’re making an absolute fortune in our country”) and enriching Big Tech weapons makers and investors, including his family.
Many who voted for Trump in 2016 and 2024 have now abandoned him because of this blatant corruption, crony capitalism, and eagerness to be on the gilded side of America’s new Gilded Age. According to CNBC’s late October poll, corruption was the top issue on voters’ minds.
Meanwhile, anti-establishment populism has finally taken firm hold in the Democratic Party. “The biggest divide in this country is not left versus right,” said the newly elected Texas Senate candidate James Talarico. “It’s top versus bottom.”
Sherrod Brown regained his Senate seat from Ohio largely due to voter anger at data centers and the Big Tech billionaires behind them.
Abdul El-Sayed never tired on the campaign trail of reminding Michigan voters that his opponent, Mike Rogers, was backed by big corporations and mega donors.
Even Kansas’s victorious Adam Hamilton—who during his run for the Senate adamantly rejected the leftist label his opponent wanted to impose on him—campaigned on making data centers pay for their own energy, banning lawmakers from trading stocks, expanding Medicare drug-price negotiations, and cracking down on price-gouging.
Hamilton also rejected money from corporate PACs, as did most Democratic candidates for the Senate.
The real question to my mind is whether, come January when they control Congress, Democrats will take advantage of the new populism to enact measures most Americans need, such as Medicare for All, and reforms most Americans want, such as tougher anti-monopoly laws and limits on campaign contributions (even if this requires a constitutional amendment).
Trump is likely to veto any such initiatives, of course, but at least they’ll lay down markers for the 2028 presidential election—which, judging from what we’ve seen in the midterms, is likely to be a populist doozie.
Meanwhile, thanks to all of you who have worked so damned hard to help bring about today’s extraordinary victory. Our democracy worked. It held.
Congratulations, all.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License.
Robert Reich
Robert Reich is professor emeritus of public policy at Berkeley and former US secretary of labor. His latest book is the No. 1 New York Times best-seller, "Coming Up Short."
The great sleeping giant of America has awakened, taken a hard look at what’s become of the nation, and roared a thunderous “NO!”
What occurred yesterday was not—as some are saying—the inevitable mid-term swing of the pendulum against the party in power. Texas hasn’t elected a Democratic senator since 1988. The last time Kansas elected a Democratic senator was 1932.
Nor was it just the economy. Americans are unhappy with inflation, but the country is not in a depression or recession. Unemployment remains quite low.
Nor, finally, was it all due to Trump. Despite Trump’s repeated efforts to get voters to “pretend” he was on the ballot, he was not. Most Republican candidates barely mentioned him and many Democratic candidates stressed local or statewide issues rather than fixate on him.
Something much larger is responsible for what occurred: anti-establishment populism. It’s burst forth against the mammoth corporations that have scored record profits while most Americans have had to pay more. Against the mega donors and super PACs that have flooded American politics with more campaign money—legalized bribes—than ever before. And against the Big Tech billionaires who have become the most powerful force in the American economy and society—as well as Trump’s and the Republican Party’s most visible backers.
The irony is that anti-establishment anger propelled Trump into the presidency in 2016 and again in 2024. Many Americans had found his politically-incorrect rants and “America first” nativism to reflect their own anger at being disrespected or left behind. “I am your warrior,” he told supporters when he announced his candidacy for the 2024 election.
But during his second term, Trump has morphed into the very establishment he had railed against. He’s given tax cuts and subsidies to tech billionaires in exchange for their help making him and his family billionaires, too. He’s promoted their AI, pushed their data centers, put Elon Musk in charge of “DOGE,” advocated their crypto, and went to war in the Middle East—not only causing gas prices to soar but making Big Oil billions (or, as Trump bafflingly boasts, “we’re making an absolute fortune in our country”) and enriching Big Tech weapons makers and investors, including his family.
Many who voted for Trump in 2016 and 2024 have now abandoned him because of this blatant corruption, crony capitalism, and eagerness to be on the gilded side of America’s new Gilded Age. According to CNBC’s late October poll, corruption was the top issue on voters’ minds.
Meanwhile, anti-establishment populism has finally taken firm hold in the Democratic Party. “The biggest divide in this country is not left versus right,” said the newly elected Texas Senate candidate James Talarico. “It’s top versus bottom.”
Sherrod Brown regained his Senate seat from Ohio largely due to voter anger at data centers and the Big Tech billionaires behind them.
Abdul El-Sayed never tired on the campaign trail of reminding Michigan voters that his opponent, Mike Rogers, was backed by big corporations and mega donors.
Even Kansas’s victorious Adam Hamilton—who during his run for the Senate adamantly rejected the leftist label his opponent wanted to impose on him—campaigned on making data centers pay for their own energy, banning lawmakers from trading stocks, expanding Medicare drug-price negotiations, and cracking down on price-gouging.
Hamilton also rejected money from corporate PACs, as did most Democratic candidates for the Senate.
The real question to my mind is whether, come January when they control Congress, Democrats will take advantage of the new populism to enact measures most Americans need, such as Medicare for All, and reforms most Americans want, such as tougher anti-monopoly laws and limits on campaign contributions (even if this requires a constitutional amendment).
Trump is likely to veto any such initiatives, of course, but at least they’ll lay down markers for the 2028 presidential election—which, judging from what we’ve seen in the midterms, is likely to be a populist doozie.
Meanwhile, thanks to all of you who have worked so damned hard to help bring about today’s extraordinary victory. Our democracy worked. It held.
Congratulations, all.
Robert Reich
Robert Reich is professor emeritus of public policy at Berkeley and former US secretary of labor. His latest book is the No. 1 New York Times best-seller, "Coming Up Short."
The great sleeping giant of America has awakened, taken a hard look at what’s become of the nation, and roared a thunderous “NO!”
What occurred yesterday was not—as some are saying—the inevitable mid-term swing of the pendulum against the party in power. Texas hasn’t elected a Democratic senator since 1988. The last time Kansas elected a Democratic senator was 1932.
Nor was it just the economy. Americans are unhappy with inflation, but the country is not in a depression or recession. Unemployment remains quite low.
Nor, finally, was it all due to Trump. Despite Trump’s repeated efforts to get voters to “pretend” he was on the ballot, he was not. Most Republican candidates barely mentioned him and many Democratic candidates stressed local or statewide issues rather than fixate on him.
Something much larger is responsible for what occurred: anti-establishment populism. It’s burst forth against the mammoth corporations that have scored record profits while most Americans have had to pay more. Against the mega donors and super PACs that have flooded American politics with more campaign money—legalized bribes—than ever before. And against the Big Tech billionaires who have become the most powerful force in the American economy and society—as well as Trump’s and the Republican Party’s most visible backers.
The irony is that anti-establishment anger propelled Trump into the presidency in 2016 and again in 2024. Many Americans had found his politically-incorrect rants and “America first” nativism to reflect their own anger at being disrespected or left behind. “I am your warrior,” he told supporters when he announced his candidacy for the 2024 election.
But during his second term, Trump has morphed into the very establishment he had railed against. He’s given tax cuts and subsidies to tech billionaires in exchange for their help making him and his family billionaires, too. He’s promoted their AI, pushed their data centers, put Elon Musk in charge of “DOGE,” advocated their crypto, and went to war in the Middle East—not only causing gas prices to soar but making Big Oil billions (or, as Trump bafflingly boasts, “we’re making an absolute fortune in our country”) and enriching Big Tech weapons makers and investors, including his family.
Many who voted for Trump in 2016 and 2024 have now abandoned him because of this blatant corruption, crony capitalism, and eagerness to be on the gilded side of America’s new Gilded Age. According to CNBC’s late October poll, corruption was the top issue on voters’ minds.
Meanwhile, anti-establishment populism has finally taken firm hold in the Democratic Party. “The biggest divide in this country is not left versus right,” said the newly elected Texas Senate candidate James Talarico. “It’s top versus bottom.”
Sherrod Brown regained his Senate seat from Ohio largely due to voter anger at data centers and the Big Tech billionaires behind them.
Abdul El-Sayed never tired on the campaign trail of reminding Michigan voters that his opponent, Mike Rogers, was backed by big corporations and mega donors.
Even Kansas’s victorious Adam Hamilton—who during his run for the Senate adamantly rejected the leftist label his opponent wanted to impose on him—campaigned on making data centers pay for their own energy, banning lawmakers from trading stocks, expanding Medicare drug-price negotiations, and cracking down on price-gouging.
Hamilton also rejected money from corporate PACs, as did most Democratic candidates for the Senate.
The real question to my mind is whether, come January when they control Congress, Democrats will take advantage of the new populism to enact measures most Americans need, such as Medicare for All, and reforms most Americans want, such as tougher anti-monopoly laws and limits on campaign contributions (even if this requires a constitutional amendment).
Trump is likely to veto any such initiatives, of course, but at least they’ll lay down markers for the 2028 presidential election—which, judging from what we’ve seen in the midterms, is likely to be a populist doozie.
Meanwhile, thanks to all of you who have worked so damned hard to help bring about today’s extraordinary victory. Our democracy worked. It held.
Congratulations, all.
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