By Salem Chicago News Staff
WASHINGTON — Democrats are fielding several candidates in competitive races ahead of the midterm elections whom national security analyst Jim Hanson describes as bigger liabilities than current polling suggests. Hanson, president of the security consultancy WorldStrat, says weak Democratic nominees in states including Texas and Michigan give Republicans an opening regardless of broader political headwinds.
Hanson is skeptical of the polling produced so far this cycle. “Nobody knows how to poll anymore,” he says.
Texas and Michigan
Texas Democratic state Rep. James Talarico is running against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton. Hanson dismisses Talarico’s appeal to voters outside the Democratic base: “James Talarico is a world-class freakazoid robot of his own demented type,” he says.
Michigan’s Senate race features Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, whom Hanson also frames as a weak general-election candidate. “Abdul El-Sayed … he’s got everything that normal people hate,” Hanson says. He argues El-Sayed’s public associations will cost Democrats support among swing voters, though specific remarks cited in that context have not been independently verified.
DEI Rollback as a GOP Talking Point
Hanson also points to the rollback of diversity, equity and inclusion programs across major institutions as a policy win Republicans can highlight heading into the election. “Have we not destroyed DEI in almost every major organization? You can’t discriminate on the basis of race anymore,” he says.
Georgia
Georgia’s Senate race, where Republican Mike Collins is running in a state with a Democratic-leaning capital in Atlanta, drew a more cautious assessment from Hanson, who described himself as optimistic but not certain about the outcome there.
Hanson’s overall argument is that the quality of individual Democratic nominees matters more this cycle than national trend lines. He says candidates he considers out of step with general-election voters could blunt the effect of headwinds Republicans face elsewhere on the ballot.
Note: The Maine Senate race is not covered in this article. One claim relating to a Maine candidate was excluded pending legal review; do not add without counsel sign-off.
