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Dick Durbin speaking to the press in October 2022.

USA Today Network via Reuters

Is the average age of a Democratic lawmaker about to drop?

On Wednesday, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbinannounced he would not run for reelection in 2026. The 80-year-old said he loves the job, but “in my heart, I know it’s time to pass the torch.” He leaves behind vacancies as the minority whip and the leading Democrat on the Judiciary Committee.
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International Space Station (ISS) crew member Terry Virts of the U.S. speaks by satellite phone shortly after landing near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, on June 11, 2015.

REUTERS/Ivan Sekretarev/Pool

EXCLUSIVE: Democratic astronaut explores Texas Senate launch

In the latest sign that Democrats are turning a new leaf after their dismal 2024 defeat, astronaut and political neophyte Terry Virts is planning to launch a run for the US Senate in Texas, GZERO Media has learned. He plans to challenge incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican, according to a Democratic operative familiar with the race. Virts’ pending announcement comes as former Rep. Colin Allred, a fellow Democrat, is reportedly planning another Senate bid, just six months after his eight-point loss to Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.

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Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party speaks after Democrat Josh Stein won the North Carolina governor's race, in Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S., November 5, 2024.

REUTERS/Jonathan Drake

Young Democrats look to bulldoze the old guard ahead of the midterms

As the Democrats start plotting their fight back into power in the 2026 midterms, Anderson Clayton has a suggestion about who should lead that fight.

“Young people have the energy and the mobility to reshape the party in ways which older generations, quite frankly, are not interested in.”

Clayton speaks with authority on this matter. At 27 years old, the North Carolina native is the country's youngest state party chair. She won the highest organizational position in the swing-state’s Democratic Party at 25.

And others are looking to follow her lead. In recent weeks, a handful of young Democrats have announced that they will be primarying powerful incumbents like 85-year old former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, 80-year-old Rep. Jan Schakowsky, and 70-year old Rep. Brad Sherman – to name a few. The challengers are former staffers and progressive influencers in their 20s who say the party’s establishment is too old and out of touch to stand up to Donald Trump.

“Donald Trump and Elon Musk are dismantling our country piece by piece, and so many Democrats seem content to sit back and let them,” says 26-year-old Kat Abughazaleh from behind an oversized podcast microphone as she announces her Congressional campaign via TikTok. “It’s time to drop the excuses and grow a f*cking spine.”

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Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) speaks during a marathon address from the US Senate floor on Tuesday, April 1, 2025.

US Senate TV via CNP/Sipa USA via Reuters

Hard Numbers: Booker sets record for longest Senate speech, Israel expands latest Gaza offensive, Netanyahu and Orbán defy the ICC, Oz universities cut off Confucius, Argentina’s poverty plunges

25+: The Democrats may not have the White House or a majority in Congress, but one thing they do have, still, is words. Lots and lots of words. Words for days, even, as Democratic Sen. Cory Booker showed by taking to the podium on Monday with a broadside against Donald Trump that lasted more than 25 hours. The veteran lawmaker from New Jersey, a former football player, had vowed to stay up there as long as he was “physically able.” Before yielding the floor on Tuesday night, Booker broke the record for the longest Senate floor speech, surpassing one set in 1957 by the late Sen. Strom Thurmond, who filibustered against civil rights.

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A coalition of labor unions, political action, and community groups march against DOGE and proposed cuts to Medicaid, housing, food assistance, and other vital programs in New York, New York, on March 15, 2025. Some expressed their outrage with Senator Chuck Schumer for voting to advance the Republican funding bill.

Gabriele Holtermann/Sipa USA via Reuters

Democrats vs. Democrats

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) met in Brooklyn on Sunday to try to plot a Democratic legislative strategy at a time of deepening divisions within their party. They don’t appear to have found one.
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US Capitol at nighttime

Photo by Heidi Kaden on Unsplash

Will there be a government shutdown?

Amid the chaos of tariffs, trade wars, stock market slumps, and global conflicts, is the US government headed for a shutdown on Friday? The Senate is struggling to reach an agreement on the continuing resolution passed by the House, which would keep federal funding basically the same as it is now until Sept. 30.

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Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., talks with reporters in Russell building after a senate vote on Wednesday, February 19, 2025.

(Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/Sipa USA)

Dems vs GOP: Who Blinks?

House Speaker Mike Johnson is expected to pass a budget bill with only Republican support on Wednesday, sending Senate Democrats an imminent predicament: Either approve a spending bill created solely by the GOP or trigger a shutdown standoff – a strategy they have consistently criticized in the past.

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