Erick Erickson breaks down the Republican wipeout in the 2026 midterms, from Texas and Georgia to South Carolina and Kansas, and argues the Trump-era GOP lost the multiracial, multiethnic coalition it built in 2024. He walks through the exit polling on inflation, tariffs, corruption, the Iran war and immigration enforcement, then explains why JD Vance blaming only the war offers an echo, not a choice, and why the loss is recoverable.
Midterm wipeout: Republicans lose Texas, Georgia and South Carolina ground as Hispanic voters swing to Democrats, 62 to 35
Exit poll breakdown: 79 percent report inflation hardship, 64 percent say tariffs hurt the economy, 63 percent call the Iran attack the wrong decision
Why "it was just gas prices and the war" is wrong: affordability, corruption, tariffs, deportation overreach and the ballroom
JD Vance, 2028 and Reagan's "a choice, not an echo" after the 1974 Watergate wipeout
Why it is recoverable: the Senate map, Nebraska and North Carolina ballot measures, and majority support for capitalism and low taxes