LEESBURG, Va. (AP) — House Democrats gathered at a suburban Virginia resort this week to draft policy blueprints and confidently talk about an election victory in November, acting like a party on the verge of taking back power.
“We are participating in this issue conference to discuss a bold, meaningful, transformative path forward with each other and with external stakeholders and experts,” said New York House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
After a painful 2024 cycle, many Democrats believe the high cost of living and voter dissatisfaction with President Donald Trump’s second term will allow them to secure a majority in the House. But beneath that confidence lurks a quieter uncertainty: Beyond opposing Trump, Democrats face the decisive challenge of crafting a unified policy agenda that can unite a party undergoing generational and ideological change.
Any Democratic majority would immediately use subpoena power against the Republican administration, something they cannot do in the minority. But beyond that, while members agree on issues facing voters — affordability, immigration enforcement and confronting Trump — divisions remain between the party’s progressive left and center.
“We can’t just be anti-Trump,” said Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan, the caucus’s policy leader. “We have to have an agenda.”
unite against
Tensions within the party were laid bare as Democrats debated messaging on immigration, the economy and foreign policy during the 2024 election and in the months that followed. But when Trump returned to power and moved quickly to implement his agenda, those divisions faded as Democrats turned into opposition.
In the House, Democrats united to challenge Trump’s policies, forcing and successfully voting against tariffs and demanding the release of Justice Department documents related to Jeffrey Epstein.
“We have become the most effective minority party in American history,” said Rep. Ted Lieu of California, vice chairman of the House Democratic Caucus.
But after more than three years in the House minority, Democrats say the political environment is changing. Looking back to November, they pointed to California’s ballot initiative to redraw congressional maps and strong performances by the governors of Virginia and New Jersey.
Democrats have since said there have been other outperformances to show their momentum, such as flipping a state Senate district in Texas this month that Trump won by 17 percentage points in 2024.
“It’s going to be a sprint” by Election Day, Nov. 3, Jeffries said. “House Democrats are on the verge of taking over.”
The more difficult task is governance
If Democrats take back the House, their most immediate power will be oversight. Committee chairs will be given subpoena power and the ability to compel testimony — tools that leaders say will be used aggressively to scrutinize the administration.
“There’s no question that oversight will be robust and important,” said Rep. Joe Neguse of Colorado, a member of the House Judiciary Committee.
House Democratic caucus leader Pete Aguilar of California said, “This is a target-rich environment when it comes to oversight and accountability.” But he also said Democrats can’t rely solely on investigations.
The impasse over Homeland Security funding shows how resistance can unite the caucus. Democrats were largely united in their opposition, using their influence to press for accountability demands.
But differences remain.
A number of high-profile progressives, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, have called for the abolition of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Party leaders and more centrist members, wary of overreach, have instead advocated for major changes, raising questions about whether addressing the shutdown would expose deeper divisions.
“We cannot allow a federal agency — an agency created for the purpose of intimidation — to act as an occupying force in our communities,” Omar said on the House floor this month. Omar’s district includes Minneapolis and surrounding suburbs. “Real responsibility starts with abolishing ICE.”
A previous shutdown fight highlighted how compromise can erode that cohesion. When some Democratic senators agreed to reopen the government without extending key health care subsidies, there was strong opposition from the party’s left wing.
“The American people have repeatedly asked us to fight for health care and lower overall costs,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said at the time. “Obviously, that finally broke down.”
“Closing Argument”
This week’s policy meeting contained few specifics on the “bold, meaningful, transformative path forward” that Jeffries initially envisioned. Instead, members rallied around broad themes — lowering costs, protecting health care and drawing contrasts with Trump — and left the details for later.
“That’s work we still have to do,” Rep. Nikki Budzinski, D-Ill., said when asked about the first bill House Democrats would take to secure a new majority. “We’ve rolled out nine different frameworks. I think all of them are equally important to address affordability, which is the goal of our coalition. It’s hard to say there’s a silver bullet.”
The Democrats’ “6 for 06” agenda was not unveiled until the fall of 2006, weeks before voters gave them a majority. In 2018, the party campaigned under the banner “For the People,” which was translated into legislation a few months later when the Democrats took power.
“I hope to update our core messaging framework ahead of closing arguments this fall,” said Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Ill. “The closing argument in ’06 was 6. The closing argument in 2018 was ‘For the People,’ right? So, as we enter the fall election season, we’re going to have a closing message frame that will delight and amaze you all.”
Still, the closer Democrats see themselves getting to regaining the majority, the more urgent their agenda becomes. Oversight may be the new majority’s most immediate tool. Maintaining power and shaping the direction of the party beyond a single election cycle will require more than subpoenas.
“We tell our members and the candidates who are running that we have to do it all,” Aguilar said. “We have to have oversight and accountability and we have to talk about the affordability agenda and how we are going to make people’s lives better if we have the opportunity to lead.”
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Associated Press congressional reporter Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.
