Democratic Primary Upsets Signal Party's Shift Beyond Anti-Trump Fight
Losses by three former Trump impeachment figures suggest Democratic voters want change that goes beyond opposing the president.
Alex Vindman's loss in Florida's Senate primary this week is the latest sign that Democratic voters are looking past opposition to President Donald Trump alone, according to NBC News analysis.
Vindman is the third Democrat with a prominent role in Trump's first-term impeachments to lose a primary this year. He fell to state Rep. Angie Nixon, a democratic socialist, in Florida.
Rep. Diana DeGette of Colorado, who served as an impeachment manager after the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot, lost this summer to democratic socialist Melat Kiros. Rep. Dan Goldman of New York, Democrats' lead counsel during Trump's first impeachment in 2019, lost to progressive former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander.
All three incumbents leaned heavily on their impeachment records in campaign ads. Vindman's ad noted he "stood his ground" against Trump. DeGette's ad showed her speaking during Trump's second impeachment trial. Goldman's ad called him "the man who impeached" Trump.
Their challengers instead argued for sweeping change and criticized Democratic leaders as too passive. Nixon did not mention Trump in her sole television ad, saying instead that "something has to change" for working people. Kiros criticized "establishment Democrats" while backing policies including Medicare for All. Lander told "Meet the Press NOW" that his win reflected a desire for leaders who "fight hard for working people" without compromising on housing, health care or "anyone's humanity."
Israel aid, health care and immigration also factored into the races. While Trump remains a motivating force for Democratic voters, the losses of the three former impeachment figures suggest that energy has shifted since his first term, when his 2016 win drove Democrats to the polls in the 2018 midterms.
Separately, NBC News' Andrea Mitchell reported that Trump is seeking another meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un before year's end, a factor in his decision to shorten annual U.S.-South Korea military exercises. Trump has said Kim now holds 57 nuclear weapons, a figure in line with published estimates, raising doubts about hopes that personal diplomacy could persuade Kim to abandon his nuclear program.
This article was produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI), in accordance with our editorial policy.
