Rightwing lawmakers have spent years using their governing power in states to do real damage: gutting public schools, banning books, restricting abortion, attacking workers’ rights, and making it harder to cast a ballot. In too many states, they’ve had no check on that power at all. No governor’s veto. No filibuster. Not enough votes to block the worst of it.
This year, in addition to New Hampshire and North Carolina, The States Project will work in at least four more red states where we see a real path to unlocking meaningful power thresholds to block bad policies or lessen their impact on Americans:
Last August, we helped flip a key State Senate seat to break the rightwing supermajority — giving lawmakers the ability to block some of the governor’s actions, including calling special sessions. With Iowa’s MAGA governor not seeking reelection, voters will have the opportunity to elect Rob Sand, a strong Democratic gubernatorial candidate in November2026. If he can win, our work to prevent a supermajority will ensure his vetoes hold.
Cross-partisan coalitions are possible, and Montana is proof. A coalition of lawmakers has worked across the aisle to keep Medicaid affordable for 75,000 people, improve public schools, make housing more affordable, and protect privacy at the doctor’s office — while blocking the extreme right’s worst impulses. We’re investing to protect and strengthen that coalition.
Rightwing lawmakers have tried to change how Nebraska allocates its electoral college votes to silence the district that chose Biden in 2020 and Harris in 2024. Lawmakers committed to protecting voters’ voices need to hold 17 seats to achieve filibuster power and block that change. In 2024, we fell one seat short. This November, we’re closing that gap.
The rightwing supermajorities have used their power to gut public school funding, defy voters on abortion, and make it harder for people to have a say through ballot initiatives. But this November, Ohio elects a new governor. If Dr. Amy Acton wins, she’ll need lawmakers with the power to protect her vetoes — and we see a path to make that possible.
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Supermajority breaks, filibuster unlocks, veto protections. This November, we cannot leave any power that’s actually winnable to the radical rightwing — not when winning unlocks the power to meaningfully improve people’s lives.
