We hope you had some time to rest over the holiday season, and that you’re refreshed and ready for the bumpy ride over the next two years.
Starting January 20, Republicans will have full control of the government until at least the midterms. We can raise our voices, we can protest—but ultimately, our ability to stop the Republican policy agenda through government action is going to be limited.
What we can and should do is focus our energy on elevating Democratic women to win back the House and make inroads in the Senate in 2026.
Luckily, we’ll have a woman heading the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Yesterday, New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand was officially named DSCC chair. Not only is she a longtime and energetic supporter of women’s political leadership, she’s supported WomenCount since we were founded in 2008—when she was still a House Member. (She even headlined our launch event that summer at Barack Obama’s nominating convention in Denver.)
Our congrats to Sen. Gillibrand on this important announcement—Sen. Chuck Schumer made a great choice, and we look forward to working together with the Senator to promote our women candidates. And we’re not waiting a moment:
While they have not officially announced their re-elects, we expect them both to run.
There will also be flip opportunities in Maine and North Carolina, and potentially a Democratic retirement in Illinois. We’ll let you know as soon as we have more updates on those races.