ROOKE: There’s Only One Way To Clean Ourselves Of A Republican Bloodbath Before Midterms

There is no sugarcoating what happened on Election Day in 2025 as Republicans lost every race that had national coverage.

As media outlets began sending their calls one after another Tuesday night, showing Democrats winning the New York City mayoral race, and Virginia’s governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general races, among others, it was hard not to see the writing on the wall for Republicans in the 2026 midterms.

The low-hanging fruit is to blame Democrats for supporting candidates like Virginia Attorney General-elect Jay Jones, who wished violence and death on his conservative counterparts. Or Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani, who promised to tax white neighborhoods at a higher rate to align with the radical left’s views on equity. And they are right. Violence and threats of violence are part of the Democratic Party; there is no denying or escaping that. There is nothing Republicans can do to prevent them from being this way. Our U.S. media apparatus has made it socially acceptable to view conservatives and Republicans as subhuman.

But what’s paramount here is the significant role the economy plays in voter turnout.

Democratic voter turnout was low. Not as low as the Republican turnout in off-year elections (which they have to fix or they’ll keep losing). But Democratic voters didn’t show up in massive numbers for the violent radicals running in these positions, likely due to the fact that at least some don’t trust Democrats to run the economy.

In the long run, this is a positive sign for Republican midterm prospects. They must act now if they want to win in 2026.

They hate the status quo.

Republicans probably have one chance to show them the joys of true capitalism. https://t.co/wOlfVE1Sn5

— Mark Mitchell, Rasmussen Reports (@honestpollster) November 5, 2025

President Donald Trump has achieved what no other president has been able to do by resolving numerous conflicts abroad. It’s clear his focus has largely been on ending the war between Russia and Ukraine and Israel and Palestine. He’s also ending other conflicts as hotspots around the globe start to flare up, and has been very successful with his new tariff policy. (Sign up for Mary Rooke’s weekly newsletter here!)

Still, while he’s addressing all of these issues in countries outside the U.S., there is a major problem brewing for Republicans – the economy. It remains impossible for most Americans to afford their daily lives. The economy was the top issue for most voters in the 2024 election, followed closely by illegal immigration. Voters still trust that Trump and Republicans are better for the economy than Democrats are, but that will only stay true if real gains are made on affordability.

It seems like this administration is focused more on Israel, Russia, China, etc., than it is on its own citizens. And while mass deportations have steadily increased, there are still millions of illegal immigrants unlawfully in the U.S., draining taxpayer resources at a time when Americans have nothing else left to give.

It’s easy to point to the metrics on jobs, inflation, or tariff revenue as a way to claim that the country is doing better. But any mother responsible for the grocery store run can tell you that none of these “wins” have had an impact on their tally at the register. And if this doesn’t change, voters will look for a candidate who promises to change this for them, no matter how terrible their policies are, because Americans are in desperate need of an economic lifeline.

The economy is the #1 issue for Va. voters, according to polling, so the answer, unironically, is “economic anxiety.” https://t.co/37vRXnDbQP

— T. Becket Adams (@BecketAdams) November 5, 2025

Republicans cannot expect Americans to cheer them on for fixing someone else’s house while the shingles are falling off their own home. As noble as it is to be the world’s peacemaker, it doesn’t matter when American families are struggling. It’s not complicated: Fix the economy and illegal immigration first, then worry about other countries and their wars. (ROOKE: Democrats Trying To Use Trump’s Signature Bill To Fund Their Attacks)

It was easy for Republicans to blame the Biden administration for their terrible economic policies that largely got our country into this mess. However, they are now in control, and the success or failure of providing economic relief to the heartland rests solely with them. Elections have consequences, and for Republicans, that means they actually have to lead when voters put them in charge. Putting their heads in the sand and pointing their fingers at the radical left is not going to change this reality.

Republicans have 12 months until their next political battle. Trump will not be on the ticket to help increase voter turnout and support for down-ballot candidates. The Trump administration and congressional Republicans have to do something to ease financial tension, or the midterms are going to be a catastrophic disaster for them.

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