Mississippi and other states have created new uncertainty about what, exactly, a red state is.
America’s political map looked pretty calcified — until last week.
Democrats’ surprising midterm wins across red states — including Scott Colom’s victory over Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi — have raised new questions for both parties that will matter a lot for 2028 and beyond.
Was this all a blip, specific to this particular moment? Or could America’s political map be changing in a bigger way, putting longtime Republican strongholds in play for Democrats?
Tonight, let’s dive into the biggest question coming out of the midterms.
The map
Since 2016, just six states have actually swung between Democratic and Republican presidential candidates. In the Senate, red-state Democrats and blue-state Republicans became endangered species. And the map of competitive House districts grew ever narrower.
But Democrats’ big Senate flips last week mostly came in states that haven’t backed their party for president in years.
“When you start losing Mississippi and Maine simultaneously, then you clearly have lost popular sentiment,” Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker, told me.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access.
Already a subscriber? Log in.
Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Source: Elections - nytimes.com
