Hallelujah! The American people have spoken, and they have delivered their judgment loud and clear. They want democracy, not autocracy. Across the country on Tuesday, we witnessed an electoral avalanche of historic proportions. Democrats gained six governorships, now lead nine of the ten most populous states, and will govern states representing roughly 75 percent of Americans. Democrats also secured six new state government trifectas, bringing unified control to Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
In the House, Democrats are on track to secure about 260 seats and elect our first Black speaker. And in the Senate, Democrats are poised to reach 56 seats, with a freshman class that will make history: the first woman senator elected from South Carolina, the first Democratic senator from Kansas since 1932, the first Muslim senator, and Mississippi’s first Black senator since 1875. I’m feeling that last one in particular, since I’m writing to you from the legal war room here in Jackson, Mississippi, where a team of us is working together to make sure every vote counts and is counted.
All of this marks a watershed moment for our democracy, a gift to America in its 250th year. Contrarians, this is your win. Jen Rubin and I left Big Media and started this publication in the dark days of January 2025 in the belief that America was better than Donald Trump. We hoped that a new daily multimedia publication would help form a community to speak out for democracy in the court of public opinion — and fight for the American idea in the court of law. Almost a half-million of you answered the call, and your paid subscriptions made us self-sustaining, with all profits going to fund our litigation winning streak.
Don’t believe those like the Wall Street Journal ed board who are saying “Trump didn’t steal the elections.” That’s only because we, our pro-voter coalition and you stopped him constantly over the past 21 months. From our and our allies’ defeating his first election takeover executive order issued early in his term to our and our colleagues slam-dunk win at SCOTUS on election eve this week, we blocked his every election-sabotage move. As I detailed here, we defeated eight major initiatives (involving dozens of legal cases) that would have set up Trump’s tampering in and around election day.
Our and colleagues’ Monday night Supreme Court win was particularly sweet. Trump had tried to undermine California’s elections by seeking to set aside a junk list of 20,000 supposedly unauthorized voters and was rebuffed. His DOJ sued and we, the Campaign Legal Center and the NAACP joined the case representing LULAC and the NAACP. Trump lost in federal district court and on appeal in the Ninth Circuit (twice). On Monday, SCOTUS rejected his emergency appeal, refusing to hear the case.
By the time Election Day dawned, we were prepared for anything. We had multiple war rooms up and running, with a coalition of hundreds of election lawyers on standby. A giant stack of complaints, restraining order papers, and affidavits were ready to file at a moment’s notice. We had spent months gaming out every possible Election Day eventuality, and we had plans in place if any were to occur.
But as you all know by now, everything went smoothly. Of course, there were a handful of problems throughout the day, but each issue was successfully resolved or mitigated. None even came close to posing the kind of sabotage we had feared.
But it’s not quite over. I spent the last few days in Jackson, Mississippi, where I was honored to represent our Contrarian and Democracy Defenders Action communities. It was amazing to see the extent to which the people of Mississippi and grassroots supporters powered Scott Colom’s heroic campaign. Black voters turned out in force at the polls and led the way in bringing in a new era of politics in the state. Colom maintains his lead, and he is going to win. The same is true for Mary Peltola in Alaska.
We should revel in this incredible week but also recognize the mandate from the American people. The corruption and cost crises (and the connection between the two) were voters’ main concerns as they cast their ballots. The American people have clearly endorsed the fight to end the rampant grift of Trump and his cronies and create a government that serves them — not one in which the president helps himself at their expense. We at the Contrarian are so excited to cover that in the court of public opinion (see for yourself in my roundup below) — and, thanks to your paid subscriptions, to continue our battle for all that in the courts of law.
Reading the Wave
Jennifer Rubin celebrated voters’ unambiguous judgment on Tuesday — and how the magnitude of victory raises the stakes for Democrats. “Democrats have received clear marching orders from the voters. Failure to move expeditiously and aggressively would be a gross error, risking loss of the faith temporarily entrusted to them.”
How the Blue Wave Became a Tsunami
On the podcast, Jennifer Rubin, Natalie Fertig, and I had the absolute pleasure of breaking down MAGA’s resounding defeat and how the South and rural areas flipped America blue. “It’s a referendum on what Republicans are doing in America.”
Jennifer Weiss-Wolf read the tea leaves of victory and loss among Democratic candidates and ballot initiatives. “There is no singular pattern for the Democrats to lean on — no clear mandate about the DSA or moderate candidates. Rather, the party needs to now do the hard work of threading it all together.”
Missouri Shatters Its State GOP Supermajority
Jess Piper of Blue Missouri joined Jen Rubin to unpack why rural wins in local races mattered this week on issues from education policy to reproductive rights, data centers to tariffs. “They can be the most rabid Republicans behind the door, but they will never say, I want to defund my local school.”
The Tea with April Ryan ft. Anthony Coley, Political Analyst
April Ryan spoke with Anthony Coley on Mississippi counting and the Callais rebuke across the South. “Folks are tired of the system because the system doesn’t work for them.”
What Comes Next?
Ben Sheehan outlined what two Democratic-controlled chambers of Congress can legally do to hold the administration to account. “Is there a chance that a Democratic Congress and a Republican White House could work together? Sure. Would that be good for the country? Depends on the topic.”
Jennifer Rubin analyzed Gov. JB Pritzker and Sen. Chris Van Hollen’s new plans for how Democrats can start on the right foot to beat back MAGA and stay in voters’ good graces. “Considerable anxiety exists about whether House and Senate elected Democrats ‘get it.’”
We Got Our Blue Wave. How Do We Keep the Tides in Our Favor?
Jennifer Rubin spoke with Indivisible’s Ezra Levin on using community power to maximize the returns on Democratic midterm gains. “The story of the last two years is the story of normal, everyday Americans organizing themselves against an authoritarian breakthrough moment as elites collapse. And it’s important we understand that story because it tells us what should come next.”
The Contrarian Covers the Democracy Movement
We all had reason to celebrate this week, but democracy’s heroes also kept the fight alive with protests in New York, Oregon, Texas, California, Washington, and more. Get help organizing from Indivisible, find protests in your area at mobilize.us, and send us your protest photos at submit@contrariannews.org.
The Losers
Report Card for the 119th Congress
Norm Ornstein bid goodbye to the outgoing Congress with a resounding F on nearly every criteria. See also his post-election take on a plan for the 120th Congress: Now What?
Raskin Confirms Blanche ‘Is Not Immune’
Jennifer Rubin spoke with Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, on Attorney General Todd Blanche, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and the nation’s demand for oversight.
Sports Owners Spent $100+ Million on Midterm Elections
Carron J. Phillips kept his eye on the ball of political funding, noting that of the top 25 donors among sports owners, only three contributed to Democratic candidates. “An asshole probably owns your favorite team.”
Cartoons, Culture, & Fun Stuff
This week, our cartoonists took on foreseeable consequences (‘This Never Would Have Happened,’ RJ Matson; Don’t Look Up!, Michael de Adder), predictable reactions (Bail Out, Nick Anderson), and total non sequiturs (Tom the Dancing Bug, Ruben Bolling).
Songs to Celebrate the Blue Tsunami
Meredith Blake gave us a soundtrack fit for those of us in a triumphant mood, from “Texas Hold ‘Em” to “Carolina in My Mind.” See also her Election Day feature on a new history of American “songs of struggle.”
How Democrats Learned to Be Funny Again
Meredith also gave us a postmortem on campaign comedy, which saw candidates like Scott Colom and Abdul El-Sayed finding ways to go for the jugular without punching down. Republicans, meanwhile.… “Vance is a master of unintentional cringe comedy — the star of a one-man reboot of Veep.”
Marissa Rothkopf gifted us a celebratory dish of blueberry lime blondies to celebrate nothing in particular.
“In the House, Democrats are on track to…elect our first Black speaker.”
But if that Representative is an ineffectual, flaccid conciliator that has secret dealings with the POTUS SIL and is not willing to hold the criminals to account, to paraphrase Scott Colom's brilliant ad, “Sheee-it! We'll pick another speaker!”
I was always hopeful, but unconvinced, that the American people were better than their leaders were.
Tuesday convinced me-- the people really ARE better than their leaders