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Garry Kasparov is the chairman of the Renew Democracy Initiative, which publishes The Next Move.
One week from today, Democrats will win the House of Representatives. The race for the Senate is tighter—thanks to some candidates of dubious quality in Maine and Michigan and a Pennsylvania senator whose party affiliation is not so sticky. Still, polls and betting markets—imperfect weathervanes though they are—suggest Democrats have a real chance in Congress’s upper house too.
This will be the first opportunity since the MAGA sweep of 2024 for Democrats to place a check on the Trump administration. It will also be a dress rehearsal for 2028—the party’s opportunity to reintroduce itself to the American people and prove that it can lead. Yet Democrats risk squandering a victory if they allow themselves to be batted around in different directions by competing interests. They need a strong political anchor.
I’ve said as much to senior Democrats. In recent months, I’ve had the opportunity to speak with a number of Democratic lawmakers. I’m no Democratic partisan—I’m on the record criticizing the policies of six US presidents, three from each party, since the elder George Bush. But I do believe it’s important to engage with the people who run this country, and Republicans won’t pick up the phone these days (was it something I said?).
In my conversations with Democrats, I always emphasize a few key points, which I’ve distilled here as three distinct priorities for the party after next week’s elections.