Rachel Van Dongen (@RachelVanD) header
Rachel Van Dongen (@RachelVanD) profile picture

Rachel Van Dongen

@RachelVanD

Managing editor, digital news @MSNOW Former @WashingtonPost, @Politico, @RollCall. Proud swamp creature. Chappell not Taylor. 666 with a princess streak.

 Washington DC
ms.now
Joined August 2011
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  • Followers5.3K
Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Tim Alberta (@TimAlberta) profile picture
Tim Alberta
@TimAlbertaNov 4
The 1994 “revolution” saw Rs win the popular vote by 6.8 pts 2006 was D + 7.9 2010 was R + 6.8 2018 was D + 8.6 2026 Ds are tracking toward a 13-pt popular vote win Have to go back half a century—the post-Watergate wipeout of 1974, D + 16.8 pts—to find anything like this.
Tim Alberta (@TimAlberta) profile pictureTim Alberta
@TimAlbertaNov 4
Spent the last month wondering if 2026 could be 2006 all over again. Nope. Bigger by every metric. In fact, the biggest midterm wave in modern history—an election to which every future midterm will be compared.
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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Patrick De Haan (@GasBuddyGuy) profile picture
Patrick De Haan
@GasBuddyGuyNov 3
new election day record: the highest ever national average for gasoline and diesel prices ever on election day. $4.12/gal for gasoline, $6.28/gal for diesel.
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.@jmart w/ 2026 in nutshell: Trump owns this upcoming defeat — & he seemed determined to prove as much by using elex eve to stand in front of Reflecting Pool & remind every undecided voter he’s more interested in his vanity projects than their needs. politi.co/3UsErNZ
Republicans Can Blame Trump for Their Midterm Woes

Republicans Can Blame Trump for Their Midterm Woes

Tariffs, a costly war and political vendettas have left Republicans scrambling to defend their congressional majorities.

politico.com
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The story of this midterm will be written by the voters who Trump drove away from his column — Black, Hispanic and young people, and the Republicans who tolerated his buffoonery as long as he kept the economy afloat and didn’t plunge the country into costly wars.
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Democrats could well win the House majority, but incoming DSA members are going to make a Speaker Jeffries' job much more challenging, via @ebonyjdavis ms.now/news/dsa-democratic-s…
‘Nobody’s rubber stamp’: Democratic socialists prepare to test House leadership

‘Nobody’s rubber stamp’: Democratic socialists prepare to test House leadership

As Democrats eye a House majority, DSA-backed candidates from Pennsylvania, Colorado, Michigan and New York share how they’d wield power in Washington.

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Story of the 2026 cycle: Here’s how Dems turned a red state map into a possible majority (w some help from Trump), via @HunterMw @alivitali @KevinJFrey @jake__traylor @NnamEgwuon ms.now/news/why-senate-contr…
The Senate wasn’t supposed to be in play. Here’s why it is.

The Senate wasn’t supposed to be in play. Here’s why it is.

Republicans are defending unexpected battlegrounds while Democrats fight to protect vulnerable seats. Here's how the battle for Senate control became competitive.

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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Simon Rosenberg (@SimonWDC) profile picture
Simon Rosenberg
@SimonWDCOct 25
AM update. We continue to see a significant surge of blacks, young people, & Hispanics in the early vote. Compared to 2022 share of vote: - Black vote is up 11% - 18-29 vote is up 25% - Latino vote is up 42%!! It's an electorate Dems wanted to see.
Image from Simon Rosenberg (@SimonWDC)
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Hakeem Jeffries told @alivitali he’s watching TX and FLA to see how big a Dem night be, given GOP redistricting efforts there ms.now/news/midterm-election…
Hakeem Jeffries is on the verge of the speakership. Just don’t ask him about it.

Hakeem Jeffries is on the verge of the speakership. Just don’t ask him about it.

On the trail in New York, the House Democratic leader predicts gains in Texas and Florida, warns Republicans about the transfer of power and edges toward a fight with Pete Hegseth.

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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Daniel Lippman (@dlippman) profile picture
Daniel Lippman@dlippmanOct 16
NEW: One White House official told me that President Trump, in an earlier meeting that Katie Zacharia was not present for, told attendees that she had no talent and shouldn’t be on television. politico.com/news/2026/10/16…
Katie Zacharia out as press secretary after five days

Katie Zacharia out as press secretary after five days

politico.com
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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Shane Goldmacher (@ShaneGoldmacher) profile picture
Shane Goldmacher
@ShaneGoldmacherOct 14
NEWS: A surprise new Democratic donor has emerged to fund his own super PAC and is spending $7 million in final weeks to blitz four red-state Senate races: FL, SC, MS and KS. Meet the man behind the money —> w/ @teddyschleifer nytimes.com/2026/10/14/us/po…
Democratic Donor Emerges to Blitz Red-State Senate Races With Late Ads

Democratic Donor Emerges to Blitz Red-State Senate Races With Late Ads

Steve Pajcic, a lawyer and philanthropist in Florida, started a group that is airing ads in Kansas and South Carolina. Florida and Mississippi are next.

nytimes.com
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Exclusive: While planning a wedding and preparing for a move to China, @PressSec Katie Zacharia sat for the California bar exam but did not pass, a person with direct knowledge of the matter told the @WSJ. wsj.com/business/media/white…
Exclusive | White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia Didn’t Pass Bar Exam

Exclusive | White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia Didn’t Pass Bar Exam

Zacharia has previously referred to herself as a lawyer in public appearances.

wsj.com
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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Alayna Treene (@alaynatreene) profile picture
Alayna Treene
@alaynatreeneOct 13
New: Trump and his advisers are debating whether to call off plans to livestream the firing squad execution of the Fort Hood shooter, with Trump having remarked privately that he did not initially know that Nidal Hasan was paralyzed from the waist down, two sources familiar with the discussions told CNN cnn.com/2026/10/13/politics/…
Trump debates calling off livestream of firing squad execution after learning Fort Hood shooter was...

Trump debates calling off livestream of firing squad execution after learning Fort Hood shooter was...

President Donald Trump and his advisers are debating whether to call off plans to livestream the firing squad execution of the Fort Hood shooter, with Trump having remarked privately that he did not...

cnn.com
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Read our story here: ms.now/news/senate-elections…
The red state route to a Senate Democratic majority

The red state route to a Senate Democratic majority

After losing control of the Senate in the 2024 elections, Democrats’ path to the majority goes through the likes of Iowa, Texas, Ohio and Alaska this fall.

ms.now
Jesse Rodriguez (@JesseRodriguez) profile pictureJesse Rodriguez
@JesseRodriguezOct 8
Very excited for this new partnership MS NOW Partners With FiftyPlusOne For Polling Analysis And Election Modeling As Midterms Approach deadline.com/2026/10/ms-now-…
MS NOW Partners With FiftyPlusOne For Data As Midterms Approach

MS NOW Partners With FiftyPlusOne For Data As Midterms Approach

The site will provide its election forecasts and polling analysis across the network.

deadline.com
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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) profile picture
Barak Ravid
@BarakRavidOct 8
NYT reports: David Milstein a top aide to U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee suppressed and altered reports by U.S. diplomats critical of Israel and skewed information to portray the Netanyahu government in a favorable light nytimes.com/2026/10/08/world…
How a U.S. Diplomat Suppressed and Altered Reports Critical of Israel (Gift Article)

How a U.S. Diplomat Suppressed and Altered Reports Critical of Israel (Gift Article)

A top aide to Ambassador Mike Huckabee skewed information to portray the Netanyahu government in a favorable light, according to multiple officials and documents obtained by The Times.

nytimes.com
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Polling averages via @50plus1news @MSNOWNews show Dems ahead in TX, AK, OH and NC, as well as neck-and-neck with Rs in ME, IA and KS. Ds also lead in 3 competitive seats they’re defending: GA, MI and NH, via @HunterMw @kabir_here ms.now/news/senate-elections…
The red state route to a Senate Democratic majority

The red state route to a Senate Democratic majority

After losing control of the Senate in the 2024 elections, Democrats’ path to the majority goes through the likes of Iowa, Texas, Ohio and Alaska this fall.

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‘Biggest endorsement fail’: Why Texas has become personal for Trump vis @jake__traylor & @SooRinKimm ms.now/news/trump-texas-rall…
Why Texas is personal for Trump: It could become his ‘biggest endorsement fail’

Why Texas is personal for Trump: It could become his ‘biggest endorsement fail’

Republicans likely need the state’s Senate seat to keep their majority. For the president, who helped Ken Paxton defeat Sen. John Cornyn in the primary, a loss would also be personal.

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Troy Jackson has had his own evolution on abortion rights, via @ebonyjdavis: ms.now/liveblog/susan-collin…
Maine Senate debate 2026: Collins vs. Jackson key takeaways

Maine Senate debate 2026: Collins vs. Jackson key takeaways

Key takeaways from the first Maine Senate debate between Susan Collins and Troy Jackson: Abortion rights, healthcare and the economy

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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Patrick Svitek (@PatrickSvitek) profile picture
Patrick Svitek
@PatrickSvitekOct 6
JD Vance heads to Lima, Ohio, on Friday for a midterm rally, per the RNC. That means Trump and Vance are on track to have held three rallies in Ohio in 10 days.
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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Sara Fischer Knight (@sarafischer) profile picture
Sara Fischer Knight
@sarafischerOct 2
New: Trump talks 2028, midterms and media woes at Murdoch dinner — Asked about WSJ subscription biz — He said it was too soon to make a decision around who he would support in 2028 @axios axios.com/2026/10/02/trump-m…
Trump talks 2028, midterms and media woes at Murdoch dinner

Trump talks 2028, midterms and media woes at Murdoch dinner

The group discussed the Iran war, Venezuela, Cuba, immigration, tariffs, as well as the midterms and potential 2028 presidential candidates.

axios.com
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Rachel Van Dongen retweeted
Ruby Cramer (@rubycramer) profile picture
Ruby Cramer@rubycramerOct 2
Emmanuella is one of the thousands of Haitians who were living and working in the U.S. legally when Trump revoked their TPS. She left her job, desperately tried to find a husband, and began to disappear. The quiet unraveling of a Haitian life in America: newyorker.com/news/our-local…
The Quiet Unravelling of a Haitian Life in America

The Quiet Unravelling of a Haitian Life in America

Emmanuella was the only one in her family with Temporary Protected Status. Now that it’s gone, she’s leaving her job without a word, desperately dating to find a husband, and beginning to go underg...

newyorker.com
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