It was one of the best election nights for Democrats since President Donald Trump returned to the White House. again.
The Democratic-backed candidate won Tuesday by nearly 20 points in Wisconsin’s Supreme Court election, a battleground state that Trump won less than two years ago. Meanwhile, Georgia Democrats cut Trump’s margin of victory by two-thirds in the state’s reddest district despite losing the election — the party’s most significant performance in all seven House special elections so far this cycle.
The results in battleground states — home to key Senate, gubernatorial and House races — are the latest voters’ rejection of Trump and his agenda and a warning sign for the GOP in November.
“This is an amazing moment in Wisconsin politics,” said Brandon Scholz, a former Republican strategist who is leaving the party in 2021.
Chris Taylor, a liberal Wisconsin judge, is ahead by 20 points with 90 percent of the votes counted — nearly double the already large margin won by another liberal candidate in 2025 — and he did so by cutting into GOP strongholds.
In Georgia, Democrat Shawn Harris lost to Republican Clay Fuller, but after almost all votes were counted the margin was only 12 points, about a third of the 37-point margin won by Trump in 2024.
While Tuesday’s results don’t exactly parallel those of November, the consistent Democratic outperformance in races large and small since Trump returned to the White House shows that the base is motivated to participate in all types of contests.
Democrats were encouraged by the results.
“Poll after poll continues to show what we’ve been saying for the last year and a half,” said CJ Warnke, spokesman for House Majority PAC, the Democratic super PAC aligned with Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. “Americans are fed up with Trump and Republicans’ promises of no new wars and low prices on day one.”
Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin said on x Harris’s improved performance is evidence that “enthusiasm for Democrats is growing everywhere.”
There were other signs of Democratic momentum: Taylor was leading in Ozaukee County, one of Wisconsin’s most reliably red areas. His strong showing across the state also helped polling, Where a Democrat won the Waukesha mayoral raceThat opened after an independent — who left the GOP and endorsed Kamala Harris in 2024 — opted not to run for re-election.
Heather Williams, who leads the Democrats’ legislative-focused campaign arm, called Taylor’s victory in Wisconsin a “decisive victory” that “symbolizes the changing tide.”
Many Republicans immediately rejected the results of both contests.
Neither competition is a direct comparison to November. Wisconsin’s statewide contest saw less money than some battleground House seats, with disproportionate spending on the Democratic side unlikely to happen this fall. Turnout in the relatively low-profile races was also much lower than in typical midterms.
A longtime Republican strategist from Wisconsin, granting anonymity to speak candidly, placed blame on GOP-backed state Supreme Court candidate Maria Lazar, who spent heavily in the race.
“Everyone involved should be tarnished, tarred and driven out of Wisconsin politics,” the strategist said, rejecting the idea that the outcome of the race would matter before November.
“Voters are very different now. GOP voters don’t come out to the spring (election) like they used to,” he said.
Republicans in Georgia similarly said there is nothing to worry about about the margins in their state’s special election, pointing to Harris’ strong fundraising and name ID in the district after running against former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in 2024.
Georgia Republican Party Chairman Josh McCoon said, “Democrats gave everything they had to this race.” “They made it to the Super Bowl and they lost.”
Cameron Joseph and Erin Doherty contributed to this report.
