Democrats are hoping this year's gubernatorial contests in New Jersey and Virginia fire up their supporters not just in those states but across the country, as they look to move on from a brutal 2024 campaign cycle in which they lost the White House and the Senate, and as polls show the party remains broadly unpopular.
"Winning cures a lot of the ills, right? It shows people we're back on track," Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin told NBC News as he knocked on doors earlier this month in Medford, New Jersey.
"But we've been winning," Martin added, pointing to the party's overperformance in special legislative elections this year, noting that each victory is "another shot in the arm for Democrats to give them a sense that we have a plan, we know what we're doing, we're back, and that we're going to win in '26 and then again in '28."
National Democrats have viewed the contests in New Jersey and Virginia as a key test of their message on economic issues — a point of emphasis voters said was sorely lacking from the party last year.
Mike Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger have done just that, building out campaigns focused on lowering the cost of living. But they've both faced a delicate balancing act on a host of other hot-button issues that have given the Democratic Party fits in recent election cycles, including transgender rights and immigration.
With just days to go before the election, polls show Spanberger with a consistent lead in Virginia over GOP Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, while surveys show the race in New Jersey between Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli remains close.
But if Spanberger and Sherrill emerge victorious in the blue-leaning states, it's certain that Democratic operatives will look to emulate the candidates' approach in crafting a message for many of the party's candidates in the 2026 midterm elections.
We spoke with Democratic officials, officeholders, candidates, operatives and voters as we reported across New Jersey and Virginia in the homestretch of the campaign. Read more here →
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