2026 midterm election races to watch

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POLITICS & DEMOCRACY

Welcome to Polltober! A TPM YouTube Exclusive SeriesTalking Points Memo Alito Says He’s Staying Put as Democrats Plan Judicial BlockadeTalking Points Memo Who Is Behind the AI/Existential Risk Scare?Talking Points Memo We’re Launching a Special New YouTube Series Around the Midterms!Talking Points Memo Court Ruling Hobbles Trump DOJ’s Jihad Against Elusive Threat of Noncitizen VotingTalking Points Memo The Paramount merger sucks for everyone—except David EllisonDaily Kos House speaker threatens Democrats with a good timeDaily Kos Trump says Iran can ‘take out’ LA. New York Times feigns confusion.Daily Kos Trump’s war on journalists gets even uglierDaily Kos Obey meDaily Kos Trump's latest claim about his economy immediately backfires: 'Not how this works'Raw Story Trump's 'massive' deal to cut gas prices unravels in its own fine print: economistRaw Story 'You can't do that!' Ex-senator flips out over Trump's 'blatantly' illegal ad schemeRaw Story CNN smacks Susan Collins with brutal flashback ahead of debate: 'Life comes at you fast'Raw Story Republican infighting erupts as party bankrolls lawmaker it once tried to oust: WSJRaw Story Trump Ordered The FBI To Investigate Peaceful ProtestersPoliticus USA Abdul El-Sayed Schools Fox News On HealthcarePoliticus USA Trump Blames Blue States, Not His Iran War, For Gas PricesPoliticus USA

INVESTIGATION & ANALYSIS

I’ve Covered Death Row Cases for Nearly a Decade. What Happened to Christa Pike Wasn’t an Anomaly.ProPublica More Than 500 U.S. Citizens Have Been Detained, Including Handcuffed or Held at Gunpoint, in Trump’s Immigration CrackdownProPublica Our Reporter Spent 10 Weeks Gambling on DraftKings. Here Are 5 Things He Learned.ProPublica How ProPublica Reporters Became Private School Owners in 24 HoursProPublica Oklahoma Oil Company Plugs Disposal Well That Posed Threat to City’s Drinking WaterProPublica Antisemitism Law Helped Get a Professor Fired for Free Speech, Lawsuit SaysThe Intercept The U.S. Military Struggles to Protect Its Bases Amid Failing Iran WarThe Intercept The Key Witness Against Richard Glossip Just Returned to Court. It Didn’t Go Well.The Intercept Susan Collins’s Committee Bought Trucks the Army Didn’t Want. Then Campaign Donations Poured In.The Intercept Public Radio Station Forced to Call Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America”The Intercept Artificial Goes After Our Silicon Valley Overlords. Just Not Very Well.Mother Jones Everything You’ve Been Told About Lethal Injection Is a LieMother Jones “They Knew, They Lied”: Fire Survivors Bring Their Fight to the Supreme Court’s StepsMother Jones California’s Mail Ballot System Excludes Disabled Voters, Court RulesMother Jones Trump Ran on Lowering Prices. Now Most Americans Blame Him for Them.Mother Jones This Lawsuit Could Make Big Oil Pay for the Harm It’s CausedThe Nation RoyThe Nation We Need More Pro-Trans Politicians. This Group Thinks It Knows How to Get Them.The Nation

📰 From Our Substack Contributors

Undermining the Post-WWII OrderHeather Cox Richardson October 5, 2026Heather Cox Richardson A Flood of Corruption StoriesHeather Cox Richardson October 4, 2026Heather Cox Richardson Power to the PeopleHeather Cox Richardson A Short History of ProtestRobert Reich Here’s How To Reduce the Existential RisksRobert Reich “Wealth and Poverty” Class 3: Globalization, technological change, and youRobert Reich The Central Question of Power in AmericaRobert Reich

🦋 TRENDING ON BLUESKY — PROGRESSIVE VOICES

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez @aoc.bsky.social

Reading people. Body language. Knowing how to connect with people totally unlike you and with different backgrounds and beliefs. Defusing tense situations. Gaining trust. High endurance, pain tolerance, and work ethic. Reaction time. Prioritizing order of execution. Anticipating people’s needs. Tons

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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social

The richest man owns X. The second richest man owns The Washington Post. The third and fifth richest men control Google. The sixth richest man owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. And the eighth richest man now owns both Paramount and Warner Bros. See the problem here?

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George Conway ⚖️🇺🇸 @gtconway.bsky.social

“He’s gotta resign. … We have to let our own people and everybody else know why it had to be done—because of what’s on the tape, because he lied.” — White House speechwriter Patrick J. Buchanan to White House chief of staff Alexander M. Haig, August 2, 1974

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Marc Elias @marcelias.bsky.social

🚨BREAKING: GOP lawyer Cleta Mitchell and convicted election denier Tina Peters are pushing a scheme to have Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick seize voting machines, as part of a broader effort for the Trump administration to interfere with the midterm vote. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...

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Mehdi Hasan @mehdirhasan.bsky.social

The IDF came into my Twitter replies to try & boost their fake report accusing Palestinian journalists they murdered of being Hamas. But when Piers Morgan invited them to debate the so-called evidence with me, they didn't show up so... he empty-chaired them. And then I debunked their 'study':

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ProPublica @propublica.org

NEW: Amid public health concerns over online sports betting, major operators like DraftKings say their in-app safeguards can prevent users from spiraling out of control. Our reporter decided to find out for himself whether that was true.

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