For businesses, the effect of Trump’s incoherent economic policy decisions is to freeze their planning in place. A recent poll of corporate chief executives indicates that the business leaders are fully alive to negative trends that may yet be undiscerned by ordinary Americans.

President Trump is out to stop the 2025 midterms from turning into a preview of the 2026 midterms. Democrats want to keep the momentum going.

Economic worries were the dominant concern as voters cast ballots for Tuesday’s elections, according to preliminary findings from the AP Voter Poll. The results of the expansive survey of more than 17,

Democrats dominated the first major Election Day since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, and there are signs that the economy — specifically, Trump’s inability to deliver the economic turnaround he promised last fall — may be a real problem for Trump’s party.

Democratic victories in Tuesday’s highest-profile, and under-the-radar, elections give the party a shot in the arm as they look to regroup and storm into next year’s key midterm elections.

And while a debate about the future of the Democratic Party may have only just begun, there are signs that the economy — specifically, Trump’s inability to deliver the economic turnaround he promised last fall — may hurt the Republican Party for the foreseeable future.

In Virginia, New York and New Jersey, Democrats emphasize affordability, believing voters are dissatisfied with the president’s economic policies.

"But make no mistake, how much you pay at the cash register is going to determine who you vote for in these elections."

In today’s newsletter: The shutdown is intensifying anxiety over the economy, and some Republicans are sounding the alarm. Gubernatorial hopefuls in New Jersey and Virginia make their final push ahead of Election Day. And the Trump administration is planning a new mission against Mexican cartels, U.S. officials say.

Democratic gubernatorial candidates Abigail Spanberger in Virginia and Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey won both elections, receiving campaign support from former President Obama.