Democrats run on AI policy in 2026 campaigns
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A growing number of Democrats are putting AI regulation at the heart of their 2026 campaigns, making it a defining issue for the next Congress.
Why it matters: The Democrats campaigning on AI policy now could be the ones writing the rules for it in the next Congress.
The big picture: As AI's rapid advancements sound alarms even from within the ranks of AI companies, the Trump administration has embraced a very hands-off approach to the technology, and Congress has not passed major AI legislation.
- Democrats running for office see an opportunity.
What they're saying: "The next generation of Democrats understand that AI is going to reshape the economy they work in and change how their kids grow up," Andrew Mamo, a Democratic strategist working on House and Senate campaigns, told Axios.
- He said that candidates are tapping into parental concerns about screen time and mental health.
- "It really speaks to how people who actually understand technology can better govern and legislate around technologies," said Amanda Litman, president of Run for Something, a group that works to elect progressive candidates.
Here are a few Democrats putting AI front and center on the campaign trail:
Mallory McMorrow, running for a Senate seat in Michigan, told Axios about her AI and kids' online safety platform earlier this week.
- Her plan calls for banning cellphones in the classroom and prohibiting chatbots from representing themselves as licensed professionals.
Alex Bores, running for the House in New York, has been targeted by pro-AI super PACs due to his co-sponsorship of the RAISE Act, an AI frontier models safety law.
- He rolled out an AI safety and policy plan this week that addresses kids' online and AI safety, data privacy, deepfakes, data centers, AI and workforce concerns, frontier model AI safety and more.
Evan Turnage, running for Congress in Mississippi to unseat longtime Rep. Bennie Thompson (D), is also focused on how government should regulate AI, campaign adviser Rodericka Applewhaite told Axios.
- Turnage is an alum of both Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and worked on antitrust issues for Warren.
Luke Bronin, running for Congress in Connecticut to unseat incumbent John Larson (D), told Axios that he's advocating for tax policies that would spread AI-driven wealth, along with workforce reskilling and education and infrastructure investments.
- "We need to be honest about the fact that [AI is] going to turn a lot of things upside down, on jobs, on what our kids are exposed to," he said.
The bottom line: AI is fast becoming a defining issue on the campaign trail for the next generation of Democrats.
