WASHINGTON
\nA year after Donald Trump swept to power, Republicans face their first major test at the polls, with voters in two of the most populous US states set to deliver their verdict on the president\u2019s return to the White House. The high-profile mayoral contest in New York City may be grabbing the headlines, but the races for the governor\u2019s mansions in New Jersey and Virginia \u2014 home to a combined 18 million people \u2014 offer a sharper preview of next year\u2019s midterm elections.
\nBoth pit centrist Democrats against Republicans aligned with Trump\u2019s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, and could signal whether middle-of-the-road voters have made peace with the president\u2019s radical cost-slashing agenda \u2014 or plan to give his party a bloody nose in 2026.
\nTrump has sent a steamroller through government since returning to office in January, shuttering entire agencies and cutting an estimated 200,000 jobs even before the government shutdown. \u201cIf Democrats sweep \u2014 or even win \u2014 Virginia and edge New Jersey, it signals the suburbs haven\u2019t forgiven MAGA,\u201d California-based financial and political analyst Michael Ashley Schulman told media.
\nThe election in Virginia, which is second only to California in the size of its federal workforce, will be a historic showdown between two women vying to become the state\u2019s first female governor. Democrat Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA officer and three-term congresswoman, faces Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, a Marine veteran and staunch Trump ally.
\nPolls show Spanberger \u2014 who has leaned on her national security credentials and cast herself as a bulwark against Trump\u2019s aggressive federal downsizing \u2014 holding a steady lead of about seven points. She has vowed in stump speeches to be \u201ca governor who will stand up\u201d for the thousands of federal workers laid off by Trump\u2019s Department of Government Efficiency.
\nEarle-Sears opened her campaign on red meat to fire up conservatives, mirroring the playbook of outgoing Governor Glenn Youngkin to focus on culture war issues such as transgender athletes and abortion. Her lagging campaign was boosted by an endorsement from Trump and a down-ticket scandal involving Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones, who reportedly sent violent text messages about a political rival in 2022.
\nOver in New Jersey, Democrat Mikie Sherrill \u2014 another 2018 \u201cblue wave\u201d alum and former Navy pilot \u2014 is also ahead, but locked in a tighter battle with Republican businessman Jack Ciattarelli. \u201cGiven New Jersey\u2019s traditional Democratic lean, a loss for the party in the 2025 election would raise concerns about its national prospects heading into the 2026 midterms,\u201d said Janie Mackenzie, a communications specialist who worked on John Kerry\u2019s 2008 Senate campaign.
\nPolls show Sherrill narrowly ahead, bolstered by strong early Democratic turnout. Trump\u2019s decision to freeze funding for the Hudson Tunnel project \u2014 a vital link between New Jersey and New York \u2014 may yet prove to be the biggest boost of the campaign for Sherrill, who has vowed to \u201cfight this tooth and nail.\u201d
\nCiattarelli, who has embraced Trump more openly than in previous runs for office, focuses on affordability, promising to cap property taxes and cut corporate rates. Keith Nahigian, a veteran of six presidential campaigns and former member of Trump\u2019s transition team, said a focus on the economy \u2014 including \u201cthe high cost of electric\u201d \u2014 would benefit Ciattarelli.
\nFor Democratic strategist Mike Nellis, Tuesday\u2019s vote will be \u201ca referendum on where the country is right now.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s the first major opportunity for Democrats to show they can win again,\u201d the former advisor to ex-vice president Kamala Harris told media.\u201dIt\u2019s a chance for voters to make themselves heard on what\u2019s happening in this country with Donald Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON A year after Donald Trump swept to power, Republicans face their first major test at the polls, with voters in two of the most populous US states set to deliver their verdict on the president\u2019s return to the White House. The high-profile mayoral contest in New York City may be grabbing the headlines, but […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":508137,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-511940","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n