Democrats Eye Ending Electoral College After Midterm Gains
Left 67%
Center 17%
Right 17%
4 left · 1 center · 1 right
What happened
Democrats won trifectas — the governor’s office and both legislative chambers — in Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin on Tuesday, according to Associated Press projections. In Minnesota, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar was elected governor and the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party expanded its legislative majorities, with at least two close Senate races headed to automatic recounts. Wisconsin Democrats flipped the Assembly and Senate while holding the governorship after new legislative maps took effect; Pennsylvania Democrats flipped the Senate and expanded their Assembly majority, giving re-elected Gov. Josh Shapiro the party’s first trifecta there since 1993. Michigan Democrats recaptured a trifecta, and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson won the race to succeed term-limited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer; in Nevada, Democrats held both chambers and Attorney General Aaron Ford defeated Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo. As of Wednesday morning, the AP had not projected partisan control of several other chambers, including in Arizona.
Sourcing check · Mostly on the record · 6 articles
5 of 6 articles cite a named source for the story. It was on the record from the first report.
What these terms mean and how they're counted
- On the record · names a source 5 of 6
- On the record means the article cites a source by name for the story's main claim: a person, or an institution speaking officially, such as a company statement or a named agency's spokesperson. The opposite is an unnamed source. The count is how many of the counted articles cite at least one such source; the names are everyone named across them, each once however the articles spell it. Here: The Associated Press, Mandara Meyers, Patrick Rosenstiel, Leslie Martes, Heather Williams and Michigan state Rep. Carrie Rheingans
- Primary evidence · cites a document or data 0 of 6
- Primary evidence means the article cites a record you could check yourself: a court filing or ruling, a dataset or report, a recording or transcript, an official statement or press release, market data. A quote is not a document. The count is how many articles cite one. Here: None cited.
- Credits another outlet 0 of 6
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- Unnamed sources 1 of 6
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- How it developed
- When the first report landed and whether it named anyone; when the first named source and the first document appeared. Here: First report Nov 4, 19:00 UTC by NBC News, naming its source.
- Not counted 0
- Opinion, analysis and video pieces, and articles too short to assess. Every count above is out of the counted articles. An article republished under a new headline is one article.
This is about who is cited, not whether the story is true. Each source below says what it names. How we count
ONE-SIDED THIS WEEK.
Only left-leaning outlets have covered this story in the last two days;
Washington Examiner reported it on 2026-11-04.
Omitted — what each side leaves out
Unpacked
Left-leaning coverage reports that Democrats won governor-plus-legislature control in five states, a story right-leaning outlets had not covered as of publication. The named states do not match across outlets: NBC News includes Minnesota, while Mother Jones includes Arizona instead. Wisconsin's chamber flips followed new maps after the state Supreme Court struck down the prior lines, NBC News reports. A reader following only the silent side would not know Democrats now hold trifectas in any of those states.
Left-leaning coverage splits on what the trifectas are for. The same wins are cast as a new power to "fundamentally change the local policy agenda" in NBC News, and as votes toward electing the president by popular vote in Mother Jones, which does not report any pledge to join that compact.
Which five states actually produced Democratic trifectas, and will those legislatures join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact?
Bottom line
Mother Jones counts Arizona as a Democratic trifecta while NBC News reports those chambers are still unprojected. Right-leaning outlets have not covered Democrats taking full control of five state governments at all.
The receipts — 5 facts one side's coverage lacks
- Democrats won trifectas in Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin
- Mother Jones lists trifectas in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Arizona, and Nevada, omitting Minnesota
- The Associated Press has yet to project partisan control for either Arizona legislative chamber
- It is Democrats' first trifecta in Pennsylvania since 1993
- Democrats won full control of Wisconsin state government for the first time in 16 years
The Left View
NBC News and The Hill reported Democrats clinching at least five state trifectas and framed the results as a major expansion of Democratic power after a strong midterm, with NBC citing millions spent by Democratic-aligned groups and quoting The States Project’s Mandara Meyers calling it the most significant night for state legislatures since the 2010 Republican wave. NBC also reported Democratic gubernatorial wins or large inroads in Texas, Georgia, Iowa and Ohio, a projected North Carolina House flip, and a possible Arizona trifecta still uncalled by the AP. Mother Jones treated the new trifectas as potentially adding enough electoral votes for states to activate the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact and effectively replace the Electoral College in a future presidential election. CBS News, focused on Minnesota, reported unofficial AP results showing large DFL majorities, quoted Democratic leaders on an affordability and gun-safety agenda including a promised assault-weapons ban, and noted Republicans had hoped a social-services fraud scandal would help them break a long statewide losing streak.
Our Take (balanced)
The trifecta account is substantive: it cites named candidates, specific chambers, and Associated Press projections and unofficial counts rather than one party’s uncorroborated word. Established in the available reporting are AP projections of Democratic trifectas in Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, plus the named gubernatorial outcomes in those states. Still uncalled or incomplete are Arizona’s chambers, control of the Texas and Georgia houses, and at least two Minnesota Senate races headed to recount; Mother Jones’s compact scenario is forward-looking analysis, not an enacted change. No right-leaning outlet has reported this. Watch for official canvasses and certifications, remaining AP calls, recount results, and any bills actually introduced in the new trifecta legislatures.
6 sources
- Democrats gain full control of five state governments, further expanding the party’s power
- Democrats flip legislatures, clinch trifectas in key states
- America Finally Has the Votes to End the Electoral College
- Democrats flip statehouses in midterm wave
- Democrats Have A Plan To Use Midterm Blowout To Undo Electoral College
- DFL trifecta 2.0: Democrats win full control of Minnesota government
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