A former top Republican operative said the GOP could still have another trick up its sleeve despite suffering massive losses in high-profile races on Tuesday.
Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, said conservatives are unlikely to just throw in the towel after Democrats scored decisive victories in key races in New York City, New Jersey, and Virginia on the first election day since Donald Trump returned to the White House.
“Here’s the side of the Republican Party you cannot lose sight of: the reason they don’t care. It seems like they don’t care because they’ve got a Plan B,” he said on an MSNBC panel. “The Plan B is the state election offices that they now control, and setting up those operations going into ’26.”
“To make sure not just that you have ballot watchers and poll watchers, but they have their fingers in some degree, on the system, is something that you need to be mindful of, because you can’t lose sight of that side of this equation of how they get the ultimate control,” he added.
Americans across the country voted overwhelmingly in favor of Democratic candidates: Zohran Mamdani was elected the first Muslim mayor of New York, Abigail Spanberger became the first female governor of Virginia, and Mikie Sherrill won in a nail-biter against her Republican opponent. In California, voters turned out in favor of a measure to redraw the state’s congressional map to secure more blue seats.
“Tonight’s a good night for Democrats,” Steele said. “Tonight’s a good night for the country, in the sense that you do have this ability to go out and vote and participate in the system as you’re supposed to. And that, to me, is more important than anything else in the face of all the other things that have happened over the last 10 months.”
Trump has already fired off a list of demands to Republicans in a Truth Social tantrum on election night.
“REPUBLICANS, TERMINATE THE FILIBUSTER! GET BACK TO PASSING LEGISLATION AND VOTER REFORM! President DJT,” he wrote in one post.
“Pass Voter Reform, Voter ID, No Mail-In Ballots. Save our Supreme Court from ‘Packing,’ No Two State addition, etc. TERMINATE THE FILIBUSTER!!!” he added in another.
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