Senate Democrats are confident after Tuesday’s election that they have an advantage over Republicans in the fight to shut down the government, pointing to President Trump’s statement that Republicans are politically “killed”. as an essential reason to assert yourself.
A bipartisan agreement negotiated by moderate Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Appropriations Committee to reopen the government this week now appears to be stalled after Democrats won overwhelming victories in New Jersey, Virginia and California.
Democratic sources say they don’t expect there to be a bipartisan agreement to reopen the government this week.
A Democratic senator who requested anonymity said that if a petite group of Democrats were to abandon the position of the broader caucus and vote to reopen the government in return for modest or even paltry concessions from Republicans, it would have a devastating impact on the morale of Democratic voters.
“That would be a tremendous disappointment. If your strategy, if something works, don’t give up,” the senator said.
Lawmakers acknowledged that “shutdowns are terrible” but argued that “the solution is not to pacify the other side,” especially when Democrats feel they are finally gaining powerful political traction.
Democrats were delighted with Tuesday’s election results.
They won the gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia by 13 and 15 percentage points, respectively.
And they won by 64 percent to 36 percent a California ballot initiative that would allow them to redraw congressional district boundaries and flip up to five Republican-held House seats.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) said on the Senate floor Tuesday morning that “Democrats won overwhelmingly” and “more than anyone thought they would.”
Above all, Trump’s analysis that Republicans paid a political price for the shutdown is now strengthening the resolve of many Senate Democrats to stand firm until Trump agrees to a major concession on health care.
Trump argued in a social media post that Republicans “lost” Tuesday’s election because he didn’t vote and because of the shutdown.
Trump told Senate Republicans at a breakfast meeting at the White House on Wednesday that the shutdown was politically “killing” the party and urged them to abolish the filibuster and reopen the government with a plain majority.
Those comments have given Democrats recent confidence that their strategy of keeping the government closed until Republicans agree to expand health insurance premium subsidies is a political success.
“Last night [Trump] said the shutdown was a negative factor for Republicans. When asked why he lost, Trump said this: “The shutdown was a massive, negative factor for Republicans,” Schumer said Wednesday.
“The President is right: Americans are aware that Republicans are responsible for this terrible shutdown, which is now the longest official shutdown in history,” Schumer said, as the Shumer shutdown had already lasted 36 days.
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.) said the election shows that “the American people are fed up with the high cost of living” and “attacks on health care.”
Schumer and Jeffries sent a letter to Trump on Wednesday again calling on the president to meet with them to “end” the shutdown and “firmly address” rising health care costs.
Republicans admit they are on the defensive after Tuesday’s election.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said she agreed the shutdown has become a political liability for her party because Republicans control the White House and both chambers of Congress.
“I think it had an impact,” she said when asked if the shutdown hurt GOP candidates.
“People saw the shutdown, realized that Congress is making this decision and we are the party that is in power,” she said.
Other Republicans expressed concerns that the Democratic election results could potentially extend the shutdown for weeks.
“I’m worried that I’m hearing a lot of my Democratic colleagues saying this morning, ‘We think we’re winning. … We think this is great for us,'” said Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.). “It’s not great for anyone in the country.”
Hawley said Republican leaders should consider meeting with Democrats to discuss how to reduce health care costs, something he has been suggesting for several weeks.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) dismissed Democrats’ claims that they now have the political initiative in the shutdown fight after Tuesday’s vote, pointing out that they are favored to win in states where former Vice President Kamala Harris won in the 2024 election.
But Democrats view the gigantic margin of victory as significant.
They believe the election results confirm recent polls that show Trump’s lead on the economy, the biggest issue ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, is rapidly shrinking.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a prominent progressive who caucuses with Democrats, warned that the Democratic Party’s voter base would shrink if a group of eight to 12 centrist Democrats negotiated a feeble deal with Republicans to reopen the government.
“Last night’s election from coast to coast was a sweeping indictment and condemnation of Trumpism,” Sanders said, arguing that “people understand that their health care premiums are about to double under the Affordable Care Act.”
He sent a blunt message to his centrist Democratic colleagues who are exploring a deal to reopen the government if a vote on raising health insurance premiums is promised.
He said “it will be very, very disheartening” if centrist Democrats agree to reopen the government without getting a commitment from Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and President Trump to do something to curb rising health insurance premiums.
“Across the country, people are saying, ‘Please, Democrats, you haven’t been strong in the past. Stand firm now,'” Sanders said. “The Democrats are winning now because they stand with working people.”
“If you give in, you lose,” he warned.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a prominent progressive voice in the caucus, was spotted after a Wednesday meeting of senior Democratic members having a lively discussion with outgoing Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), a centrist who is leading negotiations with Republicans over reopening the government.
Warren has told his colleagues that a vote to extend expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance subsidies would be largely meaningless without a commitment from the president and House Republicans to adopt a Senate-passed bill.
“We don’t need a sham vote, we need access to health care for millions of Americans who are on the verge of losing it,” she said.
She argued that Tuesday’s election results showed that “affordability is important to families across the country and that opposing Trump is also important.”
Peters was tight-lipped after the meeting, telling reporters only that centrist Democrats were still trying to reach an agreement.
“We still talk about things,” he said.
