Sen. Gillibrand on 2026 Senate Races: ‘We Just Have to Reckon with What People Are Thinking and How They Voted’

EXCERPT:

GILLIBRAND: “But I know, and you know, that politics is a combat sport. Sometimes you get knocked down, the important thing is what you do when you get back up and keep moving forward. That is how the Democratic Senate candidates won in states across the country, even when President Trump carried those states. So in Wisconsin, in Arizona, in Nevada, in Michigan, our Democratic candidates, Tammy Baldwin, Ruben Gallego, Jacky Rosen, Elissa Slotkin emerged victorious. So you have to know, how did they do it? A relentless, unwavering focus on the issues that matter to those voters the most. The cost of things. The cost of eggs. The cost of meat. The cost of milk. Public safety. Can my daughter walk to school on her own? Can she walk through the park? Can my family know that they're safe? These were the issues that voters were most focused on in those purple and red states. And it makes sense. If you are worried about putting food on the table, if you're worried about whether your kids are going to be safe at school, or whether your first responders are getting attacked on the subway by gang members, these worries will dominate your thinking. You won't be thinking as much about other issues, whether it's democracy or reproductive rights or the environment. And so we just have to reckon with what people are thinking and how they voted and why they voted the way they did.”