Vote This Time is a one-trick pony. That trick is to encourage people who have never or only sporadically voted to do so this election cycle. The pitch is that things are on the table in the 2026 midterms that never have been before. It’s not just about tax cuts, gas prices, health insurance, school choice or all the other family topics. It’s about the attitude of the Trump administration toward democracy and who, ultimately, we are as a nation.

This site is not shy about saying which candidates, party or policies we favor. We encourage everyone to vote. The more people vote, the healthier our society is. That includes voters for candidates with whom we disagree.

The primary season began in earnest last Tuesday. The Nonpartisan Policy Center has details. Candidates will be chosen during the next several months and, on November 3, the entire House of Representatives, 35 Senate seats and assorted governors and other offices will be voted upon. At this point, the House forecast is for significant gains by the Democrats. The party also has a shot–probably about 40 percent–of winning the Senate. It would need to net four seats since the vice president is a Republican.

Perhaps the best way of illustrating the importance of the 2026 midterms is simply listing events and decisions that occurred during the first quarter of the Trump administration. Of course, almost everyone reading this certainly is aware of each item. I’m listing them to reinforce the point that this cycle truly is different. Also, one-trick ponies tend to repeat themselves because they generally don’t have much to do.

The Trump Administration Has Been Busy

Shutting down USAID: One of the first steps the Trump administration took was to shutter the US Agency for International Development. This, according to a Havard study, led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people due to disease and malnutrition worldwide. The numbers – such as the estimated deaths of more than 500,00 children and more than 260,000 adults – are stunning, difficult to process and ultimately infuriating.

DOGE: The Department of Government Efficiency was given free rein to save money by streamlining how our government operates. The initiative was the brainchild of near trillionaire Elon Musk. It fired or bought out thousands of government employees, many of whom performed important functions. Not much money was saved and many of the workers were found to be indispensable and hired back. DOGE, which isn’t an official government agency, also is suspected of collecting personal information on millions of Americans.

Tariffs: The Trump administration relied upon a rarely employed law called the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977 to charge countries ever-shifting amounts in exchange to our vast markets. It was random. For instance, Trump increased the tariff on Switzerland because he didn’t like how the lead representatives interacted during a call. Congress had no say in assessment of the tariffs. The Supreme Court found that tariffs are taxes and could not be levied legally without Congressional approval. The Trump administration shifted to tariff structures that do so.

Immigration: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a part of the Department of Homeland Security, has gone after people in a number of places, with a particular focus on Minneapolis. It is violent, aggressive and unprofessional. The Minneapolis operation, which resulted in the deaths of Sarah Good and Alex Pretti, is ongoing, though in a slightly reformed and lower profile manner.

Related to the immigration issue is the plan to build a string of internment camps across the United States. The implications of this are terrifying. Grass roots resistance is building, and not just in blue and purple states.

The Caribbean and South America: The Trump administration has destroyed a number of small craft on the assumption that the boats were running drugs. No proof has been made public. The Trump administration also arrested Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro. Needless to say, the kidnapping of a head of state is unprecedented. Maduro now awaits trial in New York City.

War on Iran: The administration has joined with Israel to attack Iran. The initial attack quickly spiraled into a regional conflict. The Trump administration did not seek Congressional approval and has offered various rationales for the war. What he so far hasn’t offered is a plan for ending it.

Noncompliance with legal decision: The administration has at best a spotty record on following judges’ orders. Two examples: Congress passed a law mandating full release, specific dates and redaction parameters for the Epstein Files. The administration was late, woefully short of full release and redacted in a manner that doesn’t comply with the law. The second example is in Minnesota, where there is a real chance that a U.S. Attorney will be held in contempt and possibly jailed over a dispute about ICE agents stealing property from those it arrested.

Epstein Files: Shadowing over all this is the Epstein Files. In addition to the administration breaking the law, the idea that Trump was pals with this loathsome man and that so many people associated with the president seem so intent on keeping the details of his involvement secret clearly suggests guilt. Recently released FBI records significantly buttress that argument.

The 2026 Midterms are an Opportunity to Respond to the Trump Administration

I’ve left out items such as Trump’s inability to keep his promise to reduce inflation, the threat to nationalize the midterm elections, the use of his office for personal gain (which is expressly forbidden by the Constitution), his constant lying, trashing the Supreme Court in crass terms after the tariff decision and numerous others.

It’s stunning. All of this and more has happened in a bit more than a year. I put the list together to drive home two simple points. This administration has done things that in form and substance are orders of magnitude different than any other in our history (Andrew Jackson is a not particularly close second) and that the 2026 midterms are intensely important.

Folks who don’t follow politics closely could ask a very fair question: Why is the big deal about the midterms? After all, Donald Trump still will be president.

The answer is that if the Democrats win the House of Representatives and/or the Senate in the 2026 midterms, Trump’s ability to govern in the fashion he has will end. The administration will be investigated for everything described above.

It’s likely that the investigations will lead to impeachments of administration officials up to and including Trump. In our system, the House holds hearings on whether to impeach. If articles of impeachment are brought, the trial–the actual impeachment–is held in the Senate. Despite the fact that the impeachments likely will fail–67 votes are needed to convict–the process will slow the administration’s ability to move aggressively and make public a tremendous amount of information about the past year.

A win of at least one chamber of Congress, combined with the typical loss of focus of a second term, a Supreme Court that seems to be asserting itself a bit more and Trump’s age and poll number likely would put the worst of this administration behind us.

This is the one trick that the Vote This Time pony wants to see. Please vote in the 2026 midterms. Here is some information to help you do so.