Tuesday’s sweeping Democratic victories reshaped Washington, giving the party control of both the House and Senate. Republicans are already turning on one another over the losses. Democrats, though, may soon find that their own divisions are harder to ignore.
Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman is likely to be at the center of that tension. In recent years, he has taken on the role once associated with Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema: a forceful, sometimes combative moderate willing to break with progressives on immigration enforcement, Israel and government shutdowns.
That stance was easier to maintain when Democrats were in the minority. Now that they control the Senate, incoming Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and his team will have to decide how to handle a senator who often challenges the party’s left flank.
Schumer could simply wait and see what happens. Fetterman is up for reelection in 2028, and polling suggests he is currently more popular with Pennsylvania Republicans than with Democrats. That could make a reelection campaign as a Democrat difficult.
Fetterman isn’t the only Democrat facing voters in a competitive state in two years. Patty Murray in Washington, Maggie Hassan in New Hampshire and Catherine Cortez Masto in Nevada will also have to weigh the risks of a general-election loss against the possibility of a primary challenge from the left.
The Senate majority Democrats once imagined looks different from the one they now have. In Michigan, some expected candidates such as Haley Stevens or Mallory McMorrow, rather than Abdul El-Sayed. In Maine, Angie Craig seemed a more likely figure than Troy Jackson. Progressive candidates like these are poised to draw considerable attention in the next Congress.
It’s hard to picture the party’s most outspoken progressives working easily with a White House they accuse of fascism to pass bipartisan bills. At the same time, Schumer may want to resist demands from the left, much as Republican leaders have sometimes pushed back against their party’s hard-liners.
Democratic leaders and commentators have emphasized that most of the party’s lawmakers are not socialists. Still, the progressive movement is shaping the party’s mood, and recent primary victories have given it a louder platform.
The size of Tuesday’s wins may give Democrats enough room to prevent a small group of lawmakers from holding legislation hostage. But that doesn’t mean progressives will keep quiet. Support for Israel and funding for immigration enforcement are among the issues likely to become major points of conflict. Schumer may face pressure to accommodate the party’s left; Fetterman is less likely to do so.
As Republicans examine what went wrong, Democrats are celebrating their return to power. But what kind of party has emerged? Progressives may be a supporting structure for the established leadership—or they may now be at the center of it.
Fetterman drew attention at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas when he appeared by video to congratulate Pennsylvania’s Republican senator, Dave McCormick. The appearance revived speculation that he might change parties. He has repeatedly said he will not.
Democratic leaders have argued that the party hasn’t been taken over by the far left, but is simply broad enough to include a range of views. The question is whether that big tent has space for both progressive voices such as Hasan Piker and a contrarian like Fetterman.
Had the results gone differently, Fetterman might have become the 51st Democratic senator and one of Washington’s most powerful figures. That didn’t happen, but he remains one of the capital’s most recognizable and distinctive voices.
It remains to be seen whether the Democratic Party has moved beyond politicians like Fetterman. Republicans may try to appeal to Democratic voters who prioritize law enforcement and support for Israel. Or Fetterman may find himself increasingly out of step, with no dependable group of voters behind him.
