Rising Stars in Democrat Party Risk Getting Ousted in Midterms

They were elected as part of the 2018 blue wave that saw new Democrats benefiting from anti-Trump resentment and an unprecedented number of small-dollar donors pouring money toward their campaigns. Now, they’re at risk of being booted from Congress.

The last midterm elections in 2018 saw a slate of rising stars in the Democratic Party help take over the House and ultimately win reelection in 2020. Now, with two terms under their belt and name recognition they didn’t have before, a handful of them could face a rude awakening in November.

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Several of the political newbies, such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), are popular within the party and are considered contenders to run for higher offices in the future. However, the 2022 midterm cycle is their first election that is not dominated by former President Donald Trump — a talking point that helped them ride to victory in the last two elections.

“2022 is 2018 in reverse. It’s a referendum on the president’s job approval, and in many respects, voters are even angrier this year,” Corry Bliss, who led the Congressional Leadership Fund during the 2018 cycle, told Politico. “The 2018 class, despite spending years blaming Donald Trump for everything and pretending to not be Democrats themselves, are actually Democrats. And now, they have voting records.”

Here’s where a few Democratic stars stand ahead of the midterm elections.

Abigail Spanberger

Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) is among those who rose to fame in 2018 after she sought to distance herself from national Democrats such as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, ultimately unseating incumbent Rep. Dave Brat (R-VA).

Now, Spanberger faces a tight race against Republican Yesli Vega in a district that could lean in either direction, as voters overwhelmingly voted for President Joe Biden in 2020 but opted for GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2021. Polling from late this summer shows Spanberger with a 7-point lead over Vega, and the race is predicted to lean Democrat.

Elaine Luria

Hailing from the same state, Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) also faces an uphill battle as recent redistricting in the state has made her path to reelection much more difficult. As a result, Luria is considered to be one of the most endangered Democrats in the country.

The race against Republican Jen Kiggans has been deemed a toss-up by major election forecasters and is one of only two elections in the midterm cycle that shows both candidates with a 50% chance of winning.

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Antonio Delgado

Some Democratic stars have already made the leap from House seats to statewide offices, such as Antonio Delgado, who successfully flipped a New York House seat in 2018 before being appointed by Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) as lieutenant governor.

His absence has

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