North Carolina’s Senate race is already a big deal for Democrats who are looking to cut into Republicans’ majority in 2026. But the party is raising the stakes even further: They think next year’s election will also say something about Democrats’ viability in 2032.
Census projections show reliably blue states losing population, making it all the more important for Democrats to show they can compete in swing states like North Carolina and Georgia, party operatives say.
“For Democrats to be competitive long term and be able to win presidential races in ‘32 and ‘36 and, whatever the next 20 years looks like, we’re going to have to win consistently states like North Carolina and Georgia that are gaining population,” Morgan Jackson, a Democratic strategist and adviser to Roy Cooper’s Senate campaign said. “We can’t rely just on the blue wall states that are losing population anymore. The math doesn’t work anymore.”