The House of Representatives left late last week for August recess and won’t be back until September. The House will also be out of session for the month of October. Why? Because it is the final month before the 2026 midterm elections and campaigning is expected to intensify at that point.
The party that is out of power in the White House is historically favored to take the lower chamber or, at the very least, make significant gains; this midterm year may buck this historical trend.
A majority of states have already had their primary elections, the rest will be finished by mid-September.
Republicans have a significant fundraising advantage over Democrats this time around, which could spell serious problems for the DNC’s hopes in retaking the lower chamber this Fall.
To make matters worse for Democrats, the DNC raised $16.3 million by the end of June, but found itself $18.5 million in debt, which put them $2.2 million underwater. A very weak showing for a party that wishes to make these midterms a referendum on President Trump once again.
That strategy worked in 2018, when Democrats gained 41 House seats; it may not work again in 2026. Anti-Trump messaging is becoming an obsession at this point and the American people are tired of it.
In 2022, Republicans attempted to make the midterms a referendum on President Joe Biden, but that only netted them a 9-seat gain.
Could 2026 be a “reverse 2022?”
The Gateway Pundit spoke to various Members of Congress about midterm strategies right before they returned to their districts for August recess.
Rep Eric Burlison, R-MO, highlighted the work that the Republican led House has done for the economy over the past two years, which he called “transformative.”
“I think that you’re seeing manufacturing come back to the United States through the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill.’ You’re seeing the tax relief that people received. You’ve got new tax relief in the no tax on tips. No tax on overtime. This is all transformative to try to spur the economy,” Burlison told TGP in an exclusive interview.
Rep. @EricBurlison on why Republicans have a shot at holding the House in the midterms.
Burlison highlights the “transformative” work by the GOP-led Congress such as the “Big Beautiful Bill,” No Tax on Tips, and No Tax on Overtime.@gatewaypundit pic.twitter.com/a3gmkFaAo3
— Myles Morell (@MorellMedia) July 28, 2026
“We’re digging ourselves out of this mire that Joe Biden put us in with incredibly high inflation. And so it’s not gonna happen overnight, but I think that we’re, we’ve made progress.”
Rep. Seth Moulton, D-MA, who is running for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts, does not see the same economic improvements that Burlison does.
“Lower costs for Americans. MAGA’s in charge of everything. Costs are skyrocketing, and we’re gonna bring down costs and make life more affordable in America,” Moulton told TGP in an exclusive interview.
Rep. @sethmoulton told @gatewaypundit that Democrats are gonna “bring down costs,” if they take back the House in November.
Moulton is running for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts. You can learn more about his campaign here: https://t.co/rD51JwBWJw pic.twitter.com/gV2FFyMFcM
— Myles Morell (@MorellMedia) July 28, 2026
Rep. Nancy Mace, R-SC, urges the GOP to center the message on affordability, similar to Moulton urging Democrats to do the same:
“Gas, groceries, housing, rent, mortgages everything costs more. And like I just saw my state of South Carolina today or yesterday reject an opportunity to reduce the cost of living and save seniors money on their mortgages, and I don’t understand why no one in either party is looking out for the affordability crisis right now,” Mace told TGP in an exclusive interview.
Rep. @NancyMace blasts Republicans and Democrats for “not looking out for the affordability crisis.”@gatewaypundit pic.twitter.com/Obs3pxbdNh
— Myles Morell (@MorellMedia) July 28, 2026
Mace lost her GOP primary for Governor of South Carolina in June because President Trump did not endorse her. It is possible that what she said here could just be her firing a shot at the President.
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-TN, brings up a recurring theme since the Biden era, Gas Prices.
“I think we need to jerk a knot in the oil companies’ tails, but they’re not gonna do anything. We don’t have the guts to do that,” Burchett told TGP in an exclusive interview.
Burchett also highlights social media campaigns as an effective election strategy. Democrats have been using social media to their advantage since the Obama era and Burchett thinks it’s time for the GOP to catch up:
“I think if we get our heads out of the sand and figure out how to use social media, we’d do a good job at telling America, because the national media’s not gonna tell it. They hate our guts.”
Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-WI, highlighted three major points for the GOP messaging in 2026. Those three points are “gas, groceries, and grandkids.”
“Everything’s gonna start coming down as things settle down in the Middle East, just as President Trump and I have said. Grocery prices are coming down,” Van Orden told TGP in an exclusive interview.
“And then the grandkids thing, it speaks directly to national security, and I think with, you know, Kash Patel and the FBI, they did, what, essentially 96 Super Bowls in less than 40 days. That means that there’s a very good grasp on security here in the homeland. That’s how we’re gonna win.”
Van Orden is up for reelection in one of the most competitive House seats in the nation.
Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-NY, and Rep. Jonathan Jackson, D-IL took the opportunity to attack President Trump and Elon Musk, embracing the common Democratic strategy of making every single election a referendum on Trump.
Torres wants Democrats to win back the House to “hold Donald Trump accountable” and Jackson complained about Elon Musk becoming the world’s first trillionaire.
Rep. Don Beyer, D-VA, highlighted affordability like his colleagues, but could not help himself and went after President Trump:
Rep. @DonBeyerVA highlights the affordability crisis in America and attributes part of it to what he calls the “corruption” in President @realDonaldTrump‘s administration.@gatewaypundit pic.twitter.com/3DRyJYgVfc
— Myles Morell (@MorellMedia) July 28, 2026
“I read just today that two-thirds of Americans feel they can’t afford their grocery bills. Another thing I read half an hour ago a skyrocketing number of people that are either gig workers or Amazon workers are on food stamps,” Beyer told TGP in an exclusive interview.
“You know, we, we gotta do something about that, and part of that’s gonna be fighting back against the corruption in this administration. Sadly, and I, don’t say this with any glee there’s been more dollars changing hands among the, top end of this administration than any administration in history.”
In your average midterm cycle, Democrats would easily take the House back, if not by a sizable margin, this year could be much different.
Factors such as the DNC being in debt, Democrats’ shrinking lead in the polls compared to previous years, and Republican redistricting efforts in states like Texas and Florida could offset Democratic gains in the House.
All of these factors raise an obvious question. Will 2026 yield a similar result to 2022, but in reverse?
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