"[It’s] silly to think that patriotism belongs to one particular party” - @nancylacore.bsky.social "As somebody who watched Baghdad & Kabul roads get fixed…I want to see Michigan's roads get fixed.” - @mattmaasdam.bsky.social Bench candidates reclaiming patriotism 💪🏻🇺🇸 abcnews.com/Politics/dem...

Lots of chatter about New York this week. Lis Smith reminding us that we should also be focusing on the fact that we have real opportunities to flip reach districts with The Bench candidates like @nancylacore.bsky.social and @caitfornewyork.bsky.social who were also victorious on Tuesday:

“We weren’t waiting on an autopsy,’ said Rep. @repauchincloss.bsky.social, who chairs Majority Democrats, a new organization meant to reshape the Democratic Party. ‘We’ve been out talking for the last year to the voters Democrats lost.’” puck.news/dnc-post-aut...

“It was clear that folks were looking for something a little different” - @deniseforcongress.bsky.social punchbowl.news/archive/5182...

“Good God! Consider yourself fortunate that you have John Adams to abuse, for no sane man would tolerate it!” #Fords1776

💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻THE BENCH MUSCLES THROUGH THE MIDTERMS: New this AM in @playbookdc.bsky.social via @adamwren.bsky.social “The Bench is suddenly among the ascendant Democratic primary kingmakers.” 🤴🏼 www.politico.com/newsletters/...

#TeamPete 🤝 Team @joshturek4iowa.bsky.social Winning the Era. HUGE news out of Iowa today as the winner of the 2020 caucus - @petebuttigieg.bsky.social - endorses the next Senator, Josh Turek. More from @adamwren.bsky.social : www.politico.com/news/2026/05...

“The Bench encourages candidates to be the most authentic versions of themselves and there’s nothing more authentic than ‘a pissed off mom.’ @deniseforcongress.bsky.social ran a disciplined campaign that was true to herself and voters responded." HUGE win in Nebraska-02! Full statement:

Sign waves and live shots: with two hours left until polls close, @deniseforcongress.bsky.social is running through the tape at full speed.

Good morning and happy Election Day from Omaha where we’re all smiles while meeting the press as Bench candidate @deniseforcongress.bsky.social casts her ballot:

First in @punchbowlnews.bsky.social : New Shannon Bird ad highlighting the clear contrast in this race: youtu.be/AKA_JDull84?...

“Fears have resurfaced that the blue dot may soon be on death watch again, with inadvertent help from Dems…” @msnowreports.bsky.social on what to watch for in NE & how an easy pick-up could turn into an electoral college disaster unless @deniseforcongress.bsky.social makes it onto the ballot

“We have fought so hard for fair representation, our Blue Dot, and to retain that electoral power. We cannot afford a candidate whose campaign hands Republicans the votes to gerrymander us into oblivion.” - @DeniseForNE When it comes to Nebraska, always read @jeffzeleny 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻

New from @notus.com - a reminder ahead of the primary in #NE02 tomorrow - this race is “bigger than one house seat.” The only way to protect the “Blue Dot” and ensure Democrats keep their path to 270 in 2028 is by voting for @deniseforcongress.bsky.social www.notus.org/2026-electio...

“Candidates like @samforstag.bsky.social have the right strategy…The candidates’ first task must be to regain credibility with working people by tackling their more immediate, material concerns.” Sam’s campaign is writing a new playbook: liberal but not alienating www.nytimes.com/2026/05/09/o...

“For Democratic veterans making midterm pitches, the Iran war is personal.” Love to see Bench candidates dominate an article! More from @nancylacore.bsky.social @caitfornewyork.bsky.social and @mattmaasdam.bsky.social in @nbcnews.com 👇🏻 www.nbcnews.com/politics/pol...

“Rather than navel-gazing and hand-wringing, we just need to focus on what will put us over the top here, which is educating voters not just about Trump, but what his enablers in Congress have done.” - Lis Smith www.nytimes.com/2026/05/09/u...

“A Democrat Who Makes Me Listen.” #ICYMI: @repauchincloss.bsky.social gets the Bret Stephens treatment: “[He is] the inaugural chair of Majority Democrats…What Auchincloss and other Majority Democrats have in common is a determination to meet voters where they are.”

Tom Harkin: “There’s a saying that ‘rough weather makes good timber.’ @joshturek4iowa.bsky.social has had some pretty rough weather in his life, and he is ‘good timber.’ In fact, Josh is as strong and resilient as a good Iowa Burr Oak!” HUGE endorsement this AM:

“‘The Democratic Party needs leaders like Luke Bronin in Congress,’ @petebuttigieg.bsky.social said.” Welcome @lukebronin.bsky.social to #TeamPete, everyone! Let’s go win the era www.ms.now/news/buttigi...

Yikes! Amid a housing crisis and with rising costs the key issue for voters, @ryanbusse.bsky.social tried to pass off a staffers home as his own in an ad. The truth? Bussee lives in a $1.6 million dollar estate that didn’t make the cut… As embarrassing as it is disingenuous

“Meet the Montana Smokejumper Who Wants To Put Out Fires in Congress.” @samforstag.bsky.social joins @contrariannews.org: www.contrariannews.org/p/meet-the-m...

There were lots of hot (bad) takes heading into this weekend about the White House Correspondents Dinner & whether or not folks should participate. I believe we should always pause to celebrate the special relationship between flacks & the press & acknowledge the beauty of the First Amendment.

"To put it simply, if @johncavanaugh.org advances through the primary & wins...Hundreds of thousands of women would be forced to face the consequences." Take a break from #WHCD content to read this powerful oped from @jessicamackler.bsky.social @ @emilyslist.bsky.social thehill.com/opinion/camp...

“A new kind of Democrat is emerging in Montana—& he’s not coming from Washington…” The Bench’s @samforstag.bsky.social joined “The Two Joes” - @joetrippi.bsky.social & Joe Klein on @lincolnsquare.media to talk about his grassroots campaign & how Democrats can win back working voters:

🗳️ He’s a member of The Bench 💁🏼‍♂️ He’s a @bfswedeserve.bsky.social 📺 And now he’s on TV! First in @punchbowlnews.bsky.social - @samforstag.bsky.social is launching his first ad today. $32k in broadcast - more than the only other candidate communicating. WATCH: youtu.be/I5gN5Go-Hi4?...

“That’s why conversations like the one at the diner are important to @shannonbird4co.bsky.social …‘Meeting voters where they're at, coming & hearing directly from people...building the broadest coalition possible. It's how I've won every other campaign..." www.cpr.org/2026/04/21/8...

Always great to celebrate the work we do on the Victory Fund campaign board! @andybeshearky.bsky.social on winning the ally award this year: “I never thought I’d get an award for just doing what’s right…there should never be a false choice between discrimination and winning elections.”

If we’re really going to have a blue wave we need candidates who are actually viable & competitive. That’s why The Bench exists & why we’re with @nancylacore.bsky.social @thebulwark.com on the one candidate in SC-01 who can “navigate rough political seas…” 👇🏻 www.thebulwark.com/p/can-this-f...

"Majority Democrats is focused on...trying to articulate what the [Democratic Party] stands for, rather than just opposing President Trump." @wmur9.bsky.social on the Majority Dems roundtable today in New Hampshire with @repauchincloss.bsky.social and @goodlander.house.gov 👇🏻

Very rarely (never) do I agree to be the subject of an interview but I was happy to share my thoughts about campaigning, public service, and the opportunity to return to Marymount Manhattan College this spring to help honor the legacy of Geraldine Ferraro: www.mmm.edu/live/news/50...

Flight from Charleston to Manchester? Revolutionary. From “fist in the south” to “first in the nation…” #FITN #NHPolitics

When we say go everywhere, that includes the water… Some photos from Charleston as Bench candidate @nancylacore.bsky.social digs in on the issue of coastal resiliency during the latest stop of the Majority Democrats “Built to Last” tour:

Coffee in the morning, beers at night. 👋🏻 from Colorado 🏔️ where @shannonbird4co.bsky.social is having intimate conversations and showing up in red areas to organize and meet voters where they are

Now leading @advocate.com : a @johncavanaugh.org victory “could give Republicans an anti-LGBTQ+ opening.” It’s not just the “blue dot” on the line, Cavanaugh’s campaign could “harm LGBTQ+ rights” too. More from @cwnewser.bsky.social 👇🏻 www.advocate.com/politics/sta...

"Slotkin's sit down with Trump voters in Iowa Tuesday, and a town hall in Ohio Wednesday, was organized by a PAC dedicated to reshaping the party, Majority Democrats” apnews.com/article/elis...

"That type of frustration was on the menu at the focus group lunch organized by Majority Democrats, a political organization that Slotkin and others are using to advance a new course for their party." www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...

📺 Misleading ads 🪧 Conflicting versions of yard signs 🤐 Refusing to comment @johncavanaugh.org is eager to be a “useful idiot” for the GOP & put the “blue dot” in jeopardy. National Democrats should be as worried as Dems on the ground. More on the misleading campaign he’s running 👇🏻

👋🏻 from “Jams with Sam” in Missoula, Montana. @samforstag.bsky.social is running a campaign of optimism and joy and we’re fucking sending him to Congress 😤

#ICYMI as reported by @punchbowlnews.bsky.social this AM, @deniseforcongress.bsky.social - the only viable candidate who can protect Nebraska’s “Blue Dot” - had her strongest fundraising quarter of the campaign raising over $430k

👀 As Democratic leader in the state senate Zach Wahls’ reimbursements were more than *FIVE TIMES HIGHER* than the next closest leader. After lavish spending, “Wahls’ tenure [ended] with the 2022 elections, during which Democrats in the Iowa state Senate lost two seats.”

Update from the front lines (Tidal Basin): can confirm the bloom is PEAK 🍒🌸🍒🌸

NEW in @playbookdc.bsky.social: Majority Democrats have been hitting the road & we’ve got more stops to come! Along the way, special guests from The Bench - voices of the future leaders of our party - will be joining as we visit the places Dems have overlooked. More from @adamwren.bsky.social 👇🏻

“‘I’ve talked to several people close to Hinson, and their preference would be to run against Zach Wahls,’ said a longtime Iowa Republican operative” As Democrats work to put Iowa on the map, Zach Wahls could stand in the way as the “Republicans favorite” candidate:

“‘We Don’t Need More Lawyers in Congress’: The Future of the Democratic Party Is Emerging” Lis Smith on Majority Democrats / TheBench candidates building the future of the Democratic Party:

Majority Democrats, the Democratic group aimed to boost up-and-coming, center-left Democrats nationwide, is adding nine more elected officials to its ranks. We have the details: punchbowl.news/article/camp...

Saw the green river for the first time yesterday and can confirm it made my Irish eyes smile 🌈☘️❤️

Always great to be back in Iowa! More to come on the thoughtful, candid policy conversations @joshturek4iowa.bsky.social and @sarahforiowa.bsky.social had today in communities Democrats too often overlook.

“Booze, brunch, and the Bible…” @nytimes.com spent time in Charleston with @repauchincloss.bsky.social during a Majority Democrats roundtable with local strategists and elected leaders. Here’s what we heard about wanting to make the Democratic politics “fun” again heading into 2026 and 2028…