{"id":44737,"date":"2026-06-01T08:04:22","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T13:04:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/huewhite.com\/umb\/?p=44737"},"modified":"2026-06-01T08:04:22","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T13:04:22","slug":"the-2026-senate-campaign-updates-18","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/huewhite.com\/umb\/2026\/06\/01\/the-2026-senate-campaign-updates-18\/","title":{"rendered":"The 2026 Senate Campaign: Updates"},"content":{"rendered":"

THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING PARTY?<\/strong><\/p>\n

So is Chris Hayes right?<\/a><\/p>\n

Just look at Starr County, Texas, which sits on the U.S. border with Mexico and has the highest proportion of Hispanic residents compared to any county, according to the 2020 Census.<\/p>\n

Starr County famously flipped to Trump in the last election after more than a century of voting Democratic. He won it by 15 points, and it was widely seen as evidence of the\u00a0president\u2019s strength with Hispanic voters<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If you looked just at the percentages of last night\u2019s Senate runoff in Starr County, you would say Trump is still dominating. His candidate beat Cornyn there by nearly 50 points.<\/p>\n

But what\u2019s that percentage based on? How many Republicans actually voted in that runoff? The answer: virtually none.<\/p>\n

Only 90 votes were cast out of more than 36,000 registered voters<\/strong> in the county, according to the Texas secretary of state\u2019s office. In that same county, in a single Democratic primary for a local judge back in March, more than 13,000 Democrats turned out to vote.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why Democrats are suddenly a lot more optimistic about flipping that Texas Senate seat \u2014 and possibly the Senate itself.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

My bold. Hayes may be speaking to my confirmation bias, but I do think he has a data-based point – Texas Republicans are at least not excited by the Party’s candidates, although it’s important to note comparing a primary runoff with a primary is comparing Granny Smith to Haralson. Apples.<\/p>\n

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Both parties are in trouble.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

It’s also important to keep in mind that the composition of the electorate in terms of age for a given State is important, as well as whether folks are still enthused to vote based on Boomer issues, or if they’re willing to step back and re-evaluate.<\/p>\n

We may see the Republicans collapse in many locales this November, followed by the Democrats, assuming the latter continue to exhibit behaviors contradictory to liberal democracy.<\/p>\n

THE ANCHOR WEARS AN UGLY TIE<\/strong><\/p>\n

President Trump remains a potent weapon against the, er, Republicans<\/em>. According<\/a> to the Wall Street Journal<\/strong><\/em>,<\/p>\n

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More than a dozen Republican senators have privately urged top Trump aides to drop the fund [aka<\/em><\/strong> the “slush fund” for January 6th insurrectionists] since its creation last week<\/a>, said people familiar with the outreach, including Sen.\u00a0Lindsey Graham\u00a0of South Carolina, who is usually supportive of the president\u2019s efforts.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Trump’s influence, inside and outside the Republican Party, continues to wane, as can be measured by his increasingly loud tones.<\/p>\n

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South Carolina Republicans defied President Donald Trump and blocked a redistricting measure that would have drawn out the state\u2019s lone Democrat, Rep. Jim Clyburn.<\/p>\n

The move Tuesday all but kills their chances of flipping that seat for 2026. It\u2019s possible the GOP will still draw out Clyburn before 2028.<\/p>\n

A procedural vote to end debate on the map early failed in the state Senate 24-20, with 12 Republicans joining all Democrats. The state Senate then voted to adjourn until June 10, effectively ending any hope of redistricting before the midterms.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a massive pivot from just two weeks ago, when GOP Gov. Henry McMaster chose to call a special season to redraw<\/a>\u00a0after pressure from Trump and the White House. Now, Republican lawmakers who defected in South Carolina could face the same fate in 2028 as Indiana lawmakers who rebuked Trump \u2014 and\u00a0then lost their primaries<\/a>\u00a0to MAGA-aligned challengers. [Politico<\/strong><\/a>]<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

With voting already having begun, it was madness to continue with the plan, as some Republicans noted. Trump will resent the implication that reality can limit him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

At one time, President Trump was thought to have a special connection to the people, of whom he said he especially loved the ignorant voters<\/em>. As his voters are discovering, President-as-Amateur is a losing hand. The Democrats, despite their very real problems, at least have a better economic record than do the Republicans, from inflation to stock market to, yes, government deficits, although the Biden Administration did cloud that particular legacy.<\/p>\n

And so Senate Republican candidates are facing a dicey challenge in this election cycle, or so it appears to me. But the Democrats are not far behind.<\/p>\n

THE PELL MELL DASH<\/strong><\/p>\n

Go Roadrunner?<\/a> Here come the Coyotes!<\/p>\n<\/section>\n