Mikie Sherrill was elected governor of New Jersey by a bigger margin than expected, thanks in large part to Latinos.Image: keystone
analysis
Election day in the USA was a triumph for the beleaguered Democrats. This was not only due to “election worker” Donald Trump, but also due to the right topic setting.
November 5, 2025, 11:53 amNovember 5, 2025, 12:14 p.m
The Democrats’ successes were expected. But to this extent Hardly anyone had expected it. Zohran Mamdani is likely to have won the election for New York mayor with more than 50 percent. Donald Trump’s warning to his hometown about the “little communist” probably did him more good than harm.
Abigail Spanberger’s lead in the election to become the first female governor of Virginia was predictable, but not that of Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey. The polls there suggested a tighter race. And in California, a redistricting of congressional districts in favor of the Democrats is likely to be approved with a two-thirds majority.
The result gives Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom a boost for the 2028 presidential election. “Donald Trump provoked the bear, and that bear roared,” he shouted to his supporters on election night, alluding to the state’s heraldic animal. He urged other states to follow California’s lead.
First black chief prosecutor
In addition to these four most closely watched elections and votes, the Democrats were able to record other successes. In Virginia, Jay Jones defeated the Republican incumbent clear in the election for Attorney Generaleven though old text messages with violent fantasies against political opponents had surfaced beforehand.
The first black chief prosecutor in the former stronghold of the “Old South” can be seen as a vote against Trump’s attacks on the independence of the judiciary. Also in Virginia, Ghazala Hashmi was elected lieutenant governor on Tuesday. She became the first Muslim woman to win a state election in the United States.
For the opposition, which has seemed disoriented since Donald Trump’s election a year ago, the results are balm for the battered soul. For the time being, they are nothing more than a stage victory, and commentators are already pointing out that the Democrats are in the polls are even more unpopular than the president. And yet they show ways to success:
Donald Trump
Donald Trump did not show up during the election campaign. It didn’t help him.Image: keystone
The main reason for the democratic triumph on Tuesday is Donald Trump himself. He managed to antagonize the majority of Americans in record time with his shameless corruption, abuse of power, vendetta against his “enemies” and his economic policies, above all the tariffs on imported goods.
But Trump wouldn’t be Trump, if he found a mistake in himself. On the contrary: his name was not on the ballot paper, he said. And the shutdown is also to blame. In other words: Trump should continue as before. There are good conditions for further successes for the Democrats, for example in the midterms.
diversity
The spectrum of the Democratic Party is broad. Zohran Mamdani describes himself as a socialist, while Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill clearly distanced themselves from this label. The party is criticized for this diversity, but it can also be reinterpreted: the Democrats represent a broad spectrum of the US population.
“Our country has more than one face,” said Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a left-wing figurehead, on election night on MSNBC. This is what distinguishes them from the Republicans, who have degenerated into the Trump cult. And it shouldn’t just give the candidates who were defeated on Tuesday something to think about.
Topics
Zohran Mamdani ran a popular election campaign and focused on popular issues.Image: keystone
Despite all their differences, Mamdani, Sherrill and Spanberger had one thing in common: They did not run an anti-Trump campaign, but instead focused on issues that were important to people. And these are primarily of an economic nature. In the USA, which is rich on paper, even middle-class families are constantly fighting against shortages.
It seems questionable whether Zohran Mamdani can enforce his recipes in the capitalist stronghold of New York. It is quite possible that he will govern more pragmatically than he appeared in the election campaign. In any case, it is clear what the Democrats have to rely on for further electoral success: less elite and identity politics, more “bread and butter” issues.
Latinos
The New Jersey gubernatorial election was highly anticipated, for a reason. Many Latinos live here who “converted” to Donald Trump in droves a year ago. Now there was a backlash: Passaic County had the largest Latino population in the state a massive shift to the Democrats.
This should cause panic among Republicans, for example in Texas. There, on Trump’s instructions, the electoral districts were drawn so that his party should win five additional seats in the House of Representatives. But this will only work if Latinos vote as clearly Republican as they did a year ago. This shot could backfire.
The recipe for success for the Democrats is ultimately the same as it was in Bill Clinton’s time: It’s the economy, stupid! It could bring them further election victories, and not just for the reasons mentioned. If the feared major crash occurs on the financial markets, for example because of the AI bubble, the US economy is likely to go down the drain.
It will inevitably carry Donald Trump and his Republicans along. It is impossible to predict what consequences this would have. But for Democrats, the world looks less bleak.
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