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How Will Trump impact the 2026 Midterms?
Gautam Mukunda, Lecturer at Yale School of Management and Bloomberg Opinion contributor, reflects on the first year of President Trump's second term and highlights what to look out for as we head into 2026.
President Donald Trump had an ambitious 2025, but he will have to shift his focus in 2026 if he wants to help Republicans keep control of Capitol Hill.
While Trump has ruled out asking Congress for a second reconciliation package, he will be engaged with Capitol Hill on several fronts, including a fight to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies and a spending deal to avert another government shutdown on Jan. 30.
Some House Republicans are pessimistic about their chances next November without more assistance from Trump.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) warned Republicans haven’t done enough to pass Trump’s agenda on Capitol Hill.
“This is a historic time. We had a historic moment, and we shoved it this year,” Mace saidat an exclusive Bloomberg Government roundtable. “We’re going to lose the midterms in the House. I think the Senate is at risk because we haven’t been doing enough.”
Trump started to pivot in December, suggesting he wants to reset and drive the agenda ahead of the elections.
He announced bonuses for military members, dubbed “Warrior Dividends,” hit the road on an affordability tour, and rescheduled marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a less dangerous substance — an issue long championed by Democrats.
In his prime-time address earlier this month, Trump teased some of his New Year initiatives, including tapping the next Federal Reserve chair, lowering mortgage payments, and announcing “some of the most aggressive housing reform plans in American history.”
“You will see in your wallets and bank accounts in the new year, after years of record-setting, falling incomes, our policies are boosting take-home pay at a historic pace,” Trump said.
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Published Dec 30, 2025
