Steve Bannon said Republicans face growing risk in the 2026 midterm elections, pointing to what he described as weak motivation among core supporters and recent polling from conservative-leaning firms.
“You have a massive lack of enthusiasm among the base,” Bannon said on his War Room program. “Because they’re sitting there going ‘I’m just not feelin’ it right now.'” He said his concerns were based not only on anecdotal feedback but also on findings from pollsters including Rich Baris of Big Data Poll and Mark Mitchell of Rasmussen Reports.
Big Data Poll’s January survey found Democrats leading Republicans on the generic House ballot, with 46.1% of likely voters favoring Democrats and 42.0% Republicans. Among voters identified as “Extremely Enthusiastic” about turning out, Democrats held a 53.6% to 41.8% advantage.
Baris said in a statement that enthusiasm and likelihood-to-vote indicators “tend to predict an over-performance,” adding that “if Republicans are going to experience a comeback, something has got to change sooner rather than later.”
Meanwhile, Mark Mitchell, head pollster at Rasmussen Reports, wrote recently that President Trump’s coalition was built on voter demand for accountability rather than party loyalty alone, noting that 42% of Trump’s 2024 voters were independents or crossover Democrats, as The New York Post explains.
Mitchell argued that support among younger voters rose when anti-corruption initiatives such as DOGE were prominent, but later fell as the agenda appeared, in his words, “unfocused.” Mitchell wrote that recent months have felt “reactive rather than intentional” and concluded: “Voters are noticing.”
Bannon also warned that Democrats are making gains in Texas and said Republicans are shifting attention there, as Mediaite points out. He called the state’s March 3 Senate primary “one of the biggest primaries in the history of the country for the United States Senate,” highlighting a ballot measure that would “prohibit Sharia Law” as a mobilizing issue. “Sharia Law is on the ballot,” he said. “We’re gonna have to force it.”
Earlier this month, Bannon also addressed election administration, saying on his podcast that “we’re gonna have ICE surround the polls” in November’s midterms and that conservatives would not “allow an election to be stolen,” comments that came after the president urged Republicans to pursue greater control over voting processes in some jurisdictions.
Originally published on Latin Times
