As you have undoubtedly heard or read, Democrats have gained a hard-fought seat on Wisconsin’s Supreme Court, thanks to Susan Crawford’s decisive win last night. (I’ve implored this before, but however you’re able to support WisDems please do—having been a monthly donor since 2021, I attest that it’s money well spent!) Democratic voters turned out in droves, and it made the difference. But what’s notable is that it wasn’t all Democrats who turned the tide in the Badger State; check out this graphic I came across in WisDem chair Ben Wikler’s feed this morning:
It’s remarkable. Not only in terms of voter turnout—last night saw a half-million more voters come out than in the last Supreme Court election in April 2023—but look at the shift in votes to “more Dem.” This means more independents and Republicans voted for the Democratic candidate than in the 2024 presidential election.
The results in the Florida special elections for the House, although they did not ultimately sweep in the two Democratic candidates, are similarly striking in showing how the Republican edge in both districts has been dramatically shaved down since November. Gay Valimont, who ran for Matt Gaetz’s old seat in FL-1, flipped a county in the district that hasn’t gone Dem since 1960. Matt Weil, who ran to replace Mike Waltz—he of the Signal-Yemen scandal—massively overperformed in a district that went for Trump by more than 30 points in 2024. Given how extensively both of these Congressional districts are gerrymandered, it’s amazing that the Dems were able to make the gains that they did. So I’m taking it as a sign that control of the House of Representatives is definitely in play in 2026, especially when you consider the handful of flippable districts out there, my own of NY-17 being key.
I won’t go into the Elon Musk ridiculousness, but it’s safe to say he and the other Republicans are sufficiently butt-hurt in the wake of last night’s results, and I’d posit the GOP is collectively shitting a pickle as they recognize the import of last night’s results. But now is when we need to be extra vigilant: there is no doubt that red states are going to try and enact more voting restrictions in advance of the 2026 midterms and everybody needs to pay attention.
Despite that last thought, let’s take the time to revel. Democratic leaders are fired up—finally—and things are starting to feel the tiniest bit less horrible. And then there’s Cory Booker’s inspiring and galvanizing marathon Senate floor speech. (My Jersey heart grew three sizes today.) We all have many reasons to feel good right now, seventy-one days into this madness, so let it seep in.
Meanwhile, my Wisconsin Badger daughter took the opportunity to play the most evil April Fool’s Day trick, that I begrudgingly consider to be one of her best, which was to stop my heart when she called me in an absolute panic to say she thought she voted for Brad Schimel by mistake. Shout out to all the good pranks that make us laugh super hard.
