Stroy by: Ivan Villa, Staff Writer
Photo Courtesy: Kenny Holston, Pool via The New York Times
Donald Trump, the 47th President of the United States, addressed the 119th Congress and the Nation on Tues, Feb. 24, 2026, with a State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol. The address came two months after federal officers shot and killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minnesota. Half of Democratic lawmakers skipped Trump’s State of the Union address.
While addressing the nation, Trump announced that Vice President, J.D. Vance will lead the War of Fraud, which is targeting some democratic states like California and Minnesota. He has also urged Congress to pass the “Save America Act,” which requires all registered voters to show proof of citizenship to vote. Trump has also urged Congress to pass the “Dalilah Law,” which will prohibit commercial driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants.
Newly elected Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger delivered the democratic response to Trump’s State of the Union, criticizing the president for rising costs. During her response Gov. Spanberger also highlighted the impact on the cost on families and focused on affordability.
Gov. Spanberger delivered the address from the historic chambers of the House of Burgesses in Williamsburg, Virginia, the response comes as the nation is approaching the 250 years of America.
According to a PBS News Article, Spanberger is the first female governor and Trump critic to get elected last November in an off-cycle election dominated by democratic wins.
The State of the Union address could determine how Republicans are representing their districts. During the session in congress some Republican representatives are breaking from their party and joining Democrats on some legislative bills.
The address came before this year’s midterm election, in which all congressional seats, 33 senate seats and two Special Election Senate seats are up for a special election.
Alongside the federal election, state and local elections are happening across the nation. The midterm election could determine which party gets to control the House of Congress and the Senate.
In the Senate, there are 22 seats that are held by Republicans, two seats that were held by former Sen. Marco Rubio, now Secretary of State, and former Sen. J.D. Vance, now Vice President, and 13 seats that are held by Democrats.
Democrats in Congress need to gain a majority of three seats to meet the magic number of 218 seats. Democrats in the Senate need to control their seats and need to get a net gain of four seats to be at 51-50 in the Senate.
President Trump has been endorsing congressional candidates that are supporters of him and that will allow him to pass legislative bills without democratic support.
I believe that the state of the union address could play a big role in republicans losing control of the House of Representatives and possibly the control of the Senate due to the situation in the Middle East, and the Trump Administration changing the narrative of videos that shows federal agents shooting and killing U.S. citizens on the streets or also detaining citizens.
While there are primaries being held, in some states candidates need to get a certain percentage of the votes to not trigger a runoff. Candidates that do not meet the magic percentage will trigger a special election and the top two candidates will advance into a runoff to see which party’s candidate will be in the mid-term election.
With some states redistricting their congressional maps, current representatives are running for re-election on the new congressional maps and will be trying to defend their new seats on the special congressional maps.
Exit polls show the Democrats are in the lead to control the House of Representatives. Forty-five percent of registered voters want Democrats to control the House of Representatives while 40 percent of registered voters want Republicans to control the House of Representatives, according to an exit poll from CBS News Poll from February 25-27.
Republicans are losing support in bigger communities and might lose the control of the House of Representatives or the Senate since people are unable to afford groceries, rent, or gas. Gas prices have increased due to the ongoing war with Iran and could target the Strait of Hormuz, a shipping route that carries 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas supply.
President Trump has a higher disapproval rate compared to an approval rate according to different exit polling numbers. In his first four years in office he had a disapproval net rate of +13 and in his second term so far he has a disapproval rate of +15, according to the latest New York Times poll.
The latest polls come after the orders to bomb Iran. He is losing supporters within his party since the majority of his supporters voted for him because he said that there would be no new wars with him in office.
According to an article by The Guardian, the then president-elect told Trump supporters in his victory speech on election night in 2024, “I’m not going to start a war, I’m going to stop wars.”
The midterm election will be on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. The elected officials who win their midterm election will be sworn in January. 3, 2027.
