As Democrats are riding the high of several notable electoral victories on Tuesday, the outlook for 2026 appears a bit tougher.

Hours before the first major elections since President Donald Trump’s win last November, Sen. Bernie Sanders offered a stern warning for Democrats about the party’s secret talks to end the shutdown.

Elections this week that energized Democrats and angered President Donald Trump have cast a chill over efforts to end the record-breaking government shutdown, raising fresh doubts about the possibility of a breakthrough despite the punishing toll of federal closures on the country.

Spanberger outperformed Kamala Harris’ margin in 48 of Virginia’s 52 rural localities. And according to exit polling, she won 46 percent of rural voters — an 8-point deficit to Republican rival Winsome Earle-Sears, and a 19-point swing from 2021 Democratic nominee Terry McAuliffe’s 27-point disadvantage.

Democrats in Colorado hailed the flipping of Aurora's council, as progressives were set to take majority control from conservatives following Tuesday's election in a city U.S. President Donald Trump said had been "invaded and conquered" by illegal immigrants from Venezuelan drug gangs during the 2024 election campaign.

Three political experts told Fox News Digital what they think it means for Democrats after they elected a Virginia attorney general who promoted political violence.

The panel, which does not have the power to subpoena Andrew, made the request as part of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein.

Democrats say the message from voters is clear: don’t give in. “We are winning the hearts and minds of the American people,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, told reporters. “We’ve come this far and the American people seem to be with us.”

James Carville predicts the next Democratic president will create a committee who will recommend expanding the Supreme Court to 13 justices after winning in 2028.