It was a triumphant night for the Democrats on USA: on Tuesday night (04.11.2025) they scored decisive electoral victories in three major States — New YorkNew Jersey and Virginia — in a political environment characterized by rejection of Donald Trump, according to an analysis by The Economist.
In New Jersey and Virginia in the US, voters elected two moderate Democratic governors: Mickey Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger, former congresswomen with national security stints — the former a former CIA officer, the latter a Navy helicopter pilot. Both prevailed over their Trump opponents, even surpassing Kamala Harris’ margin of victory last year in the same states.
In New York, voter turnout reached a six-decade high with the election of Zoran Madani, 34, the city’s new mayor and representative of the Democratic left wing. Madani, a Democratic Socialist who backs rent freezes and taxes on large estates, has focused his campaign on the housing crisis and the high cost of living in a combative tone, even in interviews with Fox News.
However, as The Economist notes, his victory in an ultra-Democratic metropolis does not necessarily reflect the political climate in the rest of the US. His proposals — public housing, free services and free public transportation — worry moderates and will likely run afoul of Gov. Kathy Hotchul’s refusal to raise taxes.
Symbolic defeat for Trump
The results confirm difficult times for President Donald Trump, whose approval rating has sunk to historic lows — 18 percentage points more disapproval than approval.
Although he was absent from the electoral contest, his shadow hovered over the polls: several candidates he had supported were defeated. In Virginia, Abigail Spanberger said, “We sent a message to the world — Virginia chose pragmatism over populism.”
Positive messages, but also reservations ahead of the mid-term elections
For Democrats, this electoral success offers a political breather ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Victory for California’s Proposition 50, which allows redistricting in favor of the party, may limit the effects of Republican gerrymandering.
However, these successes have been mostly in Democratic strongholds, and the national political correlation remains uncertain. Republicans still hold a structural advantage in the Senate and in many states in the US central sector.
Nevertheless, this “blue wave” is seen, according to The Economist, more as a tactical recovery of the Democrats than as a profound upheaval of the political map of America.