Sin. Kirsten Gillibrand It says it will apply lessons learned from the 2024 elections and other recent cycles as it works to restore the Senate majority for Democrats in the 2026 midterm elections.
“If we've learned anything in the last few cycles, if you're not in the field early, talking to voters about what their concerns are, what their kitchen table issues are, and then coming up with legislative solutions to help them they're not going to feel like you're supporting them, so it's about the relationship with Your constituents,” the new chair of the committee Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee He told Fox News Digital in a recent interview.
Gillibrand, a longtime New York senator who was re-elected in November, was appointed Monday by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a fellow New Yorker, to direct the Senate Democratic Campaign Committee in the 2026 cycle.
“Electing more Democrats to the Senate in 2026 is the most important thing we can do to limit the damage being done by Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress and do more for working families,” Schumer said in a statement. “I have worked alongside Kirsten Gillibrand for nearly two decades and know she will be an outstanding chair of the DSCC. With her hard work, perseverance, and discipline, Senator Gillibrand is the right person to lead our campaign to victory in 2026.” “.
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Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., leaves the Senate Democrats' luncheon in the Mansfield Room of the Capitol on Wednesday, March 15, 2023. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
In a statement, Gillibrand pledged to “do everything I can to support our current Democratic candidates, recruit the strongest potential candidates, and ensure they have all the resources needed to win. I am confident that we will protect our Democratic seats and face strong challenges in our races.” We look forward to expanding our efforts to include some unexpected cases.”
Senator, she is looking forward to her new mission to restore Senate majority Or at least, she snapped the GOP's newly won 53-47 control of the chamber, and in her Fox News Digital interview she pointed to her re-election and efforts to help House Democrats flip Republican-controlled seats in the 2024 cycle.
“I made sure that for my race and House races in New York, our candidates in the community were talking to voters two years before the election, talking to them about what mattered to them,” she said. “People were concerned about crime, they were concerned. They were concerned about immigration, they were “We are concerned about fentanyl and weapons trafficking.”
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“We've really done the outreach and engagement that you really need to do in this day and age to make sure you're talking about the things that voters want you to work on,” Gillibrand stressed.
Plus, she said Democrats can learn from this President-elect Donald Trump 2024 White House victory.
“President-elect Trump is a tremendous candidate,” Gillibrand noted. “He showed in this last election that he can win over voters in states all over this country, not just red states.” “I think it's important to learn the lessons of the past cycle.”
President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago on Monday, December 16, 2024 in Palm Beach, Florida. (AFP/Evan Vucci)
Senate Democrats faced a very tough map in the 2024 session as they lost control of the majority. An early reading of the 2026 map shows that they will continue to play defensively in some states, but it also presents attacking opportunities.
Among them is the southeastern battleground state of North Carolina.
“There are a number of places where Democrats could win if they have the right candidate in the community early enough to talk about the issues that voters care about,” Gillibrand said. “A state like North Carolina might be one of the states where we came very close last time.” “. .
There is a lot of speculation that former Gov. Roy Cooper, who just finished leading the state for two terms, might make a Senate bid against incumbent Republican Sen. Thom Tillis.
“There are some remarkably good candidates in North Carolina, considering the former governor would be one of them. This is the kind of state I'll be looking at across the country, states that Democrats have won in the past, where they won.” “They might be able to win again if they have a candidate who really resonates and does the hard work of engaging voters early,” Gillibrand said.
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Blue-leaning Maine could be another potential opportunity for Gillibrand's revival, with moderate Republican Susan Collins running for re-election in 2026.
“Susan is very hard to get over,” Gillibrand admitted. But, she added, “If we get a great candidate there, that's a race we'll be competitive in.”
Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
The 2026 map also gives Republicans opportunities to flip Democratic-controlled seats.
In the swing state of New Hampshire, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is preparing for re-election.
Sen. Gary Peters, who ran the DSCC in the 2022 and 2024 terms, is up for re-election in battleground Michigan. The same is true for Senator Jon Ossoff in the first term in the swing state of Georgia.
“The great thing about Jeanne Shaheen is that she's out in her community every week, talking to people about the things she's working on, on their behalf. She has common sense, and she's bipartisan, so I'm optimistic we'll fill her seat.” Gillibrand said. “I'm also optimistic about making sure that Gary Peters takes his seat in Michigan. And again, he's very bipartisan. He's constantly working on behalf of voters in Michigan to make sure they understand that he's fighting for them. The same is true, so am I.” . “I would say Jon Ossoff has been starting out as a freshman senator this past term, and I think he's resonating with voters in Georgia.”
