The 2026 Path Runs Through Populism
Polling shows a populist, progressive Democrat beats a Republican by fifteen points.
Last week, buried among the noise of the Republicans’ battle cries for “civil war,” Texas Congressman and Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar published an article on Data for Progress that showed that progressive, populist Democratic platforms beat Republicans by +15, opposed to +6 for a generic Democratic platform. Voters want someone who will lower costs, fight corruption, and make the rich play by the rules.
This will resonate in Texas more than anywhere else, given the state’s current economic situation and the expected outlook by November 2026. This will work for candidates running for the state and federal levels.
Voters are facing higher prices every week in Trump’s economy (everyone needs to start calling it that), stagnant wages, and politics has unmistakably been captured by the Republican elite. Democrats (especially at the national level) really dropped the ball in 2024 by thinking the magic recipe was kissing Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger’s butt.
What they need is a message that will win back working-class trust and give volunteers something worth knocking doors for. Casar’s case is refreshingly simple, and something many Texas Democrats are already doing. Run on economic populism that lowers costs, cleans up corruption, and makes billionaires play by the same rules as everyone else. And the data backs it up.
In new polling, a Democrat framed around “fight corruption, lower costs, and hold billionaires accountable” beats a Republican by fifteen points. The same race described in bland, consultant-speak, “defend the rule of law” and “promote opportunity,” is only up six. That nine-point swing is clarity, and it points to a path for 2026 that’s as popular as it is concrete.
The evidence.
The poll found that with a populist message, non-college voters shift a Dem +9 margin (the generic message leaves Democrats at –2 with this group). Voters making under $50,000 go to Dem +22 (vs. +6 under the generic frame). Those gains are visible in the Split A vs. Split B crosstabs for “No College/College” and “Income under $50k.” In short, populist messaging grows support exactly where Democrats need it.
And before anyone fixes their mouth that way, this isn’t about flipping Republicans, it’s about getting people to show up.
Texas isn’t a persuasion problem. It’s a participation problem. Look at 2024. 31.5% of eligible Texans were registered but didn’t vote, and another 18.8% were eligible but not registered. That’s 50.3% of the state sitting out, almost twice the size of the Republican vote share (27.9%). For every 3 Republican votes cast, there were about 5 Texans who didn’t vote at all. The biggest pool to grow is ours.
That’s why Casar’s message matters. When you say “lower costs, crack down on corporate gouging, clean up corruption, make billionaires play by the rules,” you’re not begging hard-core Republicans to convert. You’re giving checked-out working people a reason to care and a plan that feels concrete and immediate.
Who are the easiest gets?
Registered drop-offs in apartment corridors, service-sector precincts, and younger/renter neighborhoods (RGV, East Harris, Bexar, I-35 spine).
Unregistered but eligible Texans, such as new movers, 18–24 year-olds, and naturalized citizens who agree with the agenda but haven’t been asked.
We don’t need to win arguments on Fox. We need to activate the half of Texas that sat out, with a populist economic message that feels like help, not a hashtag.
Listen to how James Talarico handled this in an interview this weekend:
The sound is off because I screen-recorded a recording of a recording.
Talarico is going to win. I also saw a Facebook post from Colin Allred this weekend that said something along the lines of (paraphrasing), “Hey, I like working people, too.” But I digress.
What populist progressive messaging is.
Basically, it’s about lowering costs, cracking down on corruption, and ensuring billionaires play by the rules. The Data for Progress poll lays out some bread-and-butter issues, but I’ve also added some Texas-specific matters that I think would work.
Here are the ones from the Data for Progress:
Ban price coordination that keeps prices high. 79% support.
Cap credit-card APR at 10%. 78% support.
Add dental/vision/hearing to Medicare. 87% support.
Offer a public option that people can choose. 73% support.
Supreme Court ethics rules (disclose gifts, conflicts). 83% support.
Ban members of Congress from trading stocks. 73% support.
Shine light on dark-money campaign cash. 75% support.
Free school meals for all students. 77% support.
Stronger Child Tax Credit (monthly). 68% support.
Down-payment help for first-gen buyers. 70% support.
Keep medical debt off credit reports. 79% support.
Here are some Texas-specific populist planks I came up with that aren’t in the poll, but I think they would hit the same nerve.
Fix the grid, stop price spikes in our electric bills.
Take on property insurance.
Stop corporate housing hoarding.
Close corporate property-tax loopholes & abatements.
Heat protection for outdoor workers.
Raise wages.
Crack down on wage theft.
Keep hospitals open and accept our federal money to expand Medicaid.
Kill vouchers. Fund classrooms.
Ban the revolving door of lobbyists in Austin.
That’s it. Lower bills. Fair rules. Clean government.
Democrats should be running on (and should deliver on) getting our bills down. Trump’s first economy, mishandling of COVID, second tax cuts to billionaires, and tariffs will be disastrous for the working class. We’re already feeling the squeeze at the grocery store.
Republicans handed out corporate tax breaks while your bills rose, protected utilities that failed during grid crises, blocked Medicaid expansion, and keep pushing school vouchers that drain your kid’s classroom.
No more grifts. Democrats running for Congress should advocate for banning stock trades for lawmakers, and those running for the Legislature should push for implementing campaign finance contribution limits. End the Austin revolving door, expose dark money in real time, require Supreme Court–level ethics for every public office, and claw back corporate giveaways that don’t create Texas jobs.
Republicans talk culture wars. Republicans deliver corporate giveaways.
Democrats need to do the opposite. The need to address lowering costs, cleaning up corruption, and investing in Texas schools and hospitals. If that’s our priority, it needs to be theirs. Let’s hold them to it in 2026.
November 4: Constitutional/TX18/SD09 Election
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“Voters want someone who will lower costs, fight corruption, and make the rich play by the rules.”
LET’S TAKE IT TO THEM.
This is precisely why you see the level of voter suppression that there is in Texas alongside with various lobbying groups such as AIPAC, Fossil Fuels, and etc interfering with Democratic primaries. These bastards aren't gonna stop until they make the country permissible enough to accept a fascist regime. Voter suppression is precisely their tool to get elected because they know they cant win through popular policies. They either win by rigging the game or by taking advantage of democratic incompetence which is running rampant as hell. Our new yorker governor finally took the time to finally endorse Zohran Mamdani but we still have Schumer and Jeffries not endorsing Zohran Mamdani.