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 Ashley.

• 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 Ashley 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 said.

• 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 Ashley 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.

An AI safeguards advocacy group tied to various super PACs is calling on candidates to make clear where they stand on the technology.

Why it matters: Millions of dollars are up for grabs ahead of the midterms for the politicians that get AI right — and what that means depends on which rival super PAC you ask.

Driving the news: Public First Action is not only looking to identify where candidates are on AI, but also wants to make AI policy a standard campaign topic and not an afterthought, the advocacy group told Maria.

• The group is tied to three independent PACs: one each for Republicans and Democrats and a bipartisan one.
• Candidates for House, Senate, governor, and attorney general will be asked to state their positions in a questionnaire around transparency, protecting kids and workforce impacts.
• The questionnaire also asks candidates for their stances on national security risks, whistleblower protections, and how federal and state policymakers should balance AI governance.

Public First Action yesterday launched its first ad in Tennessee supporting Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn's Kids Online Safety Act and the TRUMP America AI Act, which seeks to codify the president's call for a national framework in an executive order targeting state AI laws.

• The Republican PAC Defending Our Values launched ads in the Nebraska Senate race backing Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts, who advocates for restricting foreign adversaries' access to AI chips.

Catch up quick: Public First Action this week secured the backing of Anthropic and is positioning itself as the organization that supports AI safeguards and strong federal regulation.

The other side: Leading the Future, a PAC focused on getting rid of a patchwork of state-level regulation, has the support of OpenAI's Greg Brockman, a16Z and other industry heavy hitters.

• Leading the Future is funneling $5 million toward Republican Rep. Byron Donalds' run for Florida governor against incumbent Gov. Ron DeSantis, who favors regulations focused on protecting consumers against AI harms.
• The PAC is also backing Republican Laurie Buckhout in a North Carolina primary for the House and Democrats Jesse Jackson Jr. and Melissa Bean in Illinois House primaries.

The bottom line: Regardless of where AI falls on voters' priority lists, rival super PACs are getting ready to reward, or punish, candidates based on how they approach the tech.

Tech, banking, auto and cable trade groups don't want the Trump administration to change the federal framework they've been using to safely deploy AI, per a letter shared exclusively with Ashley.

Why it matters: Absent federal AI legislation, companies rely on the Commerce Department-backed guidelines to use AI tools internally.

• According to tech lobbyists familiar with the matter, there's a fear that certain aspects of the framework deemed "woke" or tied to the Biden era could be cut from the guidelines that businesses have spent time and money on.

Context: The National Institute of Standards and Technology's AI Risk Management Framework, a voluntary guide to safe and responsible AI use, was first released in 2023 thanks to a bill passed during President Trump's first administration.

• Trump's AI action plan calls for "revising the NIST AI Risk Management Framework to eliminate references to misinformation, diversity, equity and inclusion and climate change."
• Lobbyists anticipate a revised version of the framework will come out soon.

Read more.

The Department of Labor today will announce a voluntary framework officials say will help workers adapt to an AI-driven economy.

Why it matters: As AI rapidly changes how work gets done across industries, the administration's guidance is focused on literacy and best practices.

Driving the news: The framework, shared first with Maria, is meant to help states, workforce boards, community colleges, apprenticeship programs, and employers train an AI-ready workforce.

• DOL lays out five "content areas" for AI literacy, such as understanding AI's core capabilities, directing AI systems effectively and using AI in "ethical and secure ways."
• It also sets out seven principles of literacy, including hands-on learning and building complementary "human skills such as judgement, creativity, communication, and problem-solving."

Zoom in: The framework doesn't impose any new requirements on either companies or workers, and instead offers a voluntary playbook for AI literacy.

Keep reading.

Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) today introduced a bipartisan bill to create a federal tax credit for companies that invest in AI training for employees.

Why it matters: Lawmakers in both parties are searching for ways to boost AI competitiveness without leaving people behind, and workforce upskilling is emerging as common ground.

• Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) is co-sponsoring the bill with Gottheimer, who is one of the co-chairs of a new House Democratic AI policy commission.

What's inside: The AI Workforce Training Act would give businesses a tax credit equal to 30% of qualified AI training expenses for employees.

• It would be capped at $2,500 per employee per year, with adjustments for inflation.
• Workshops, certificate programs, and courses on prompt engineering, data literacy, machine learning fundamentals or AI ethics would count as qualified training expenses under the legislation.
• Wages paid to employees while attending training and costs of developing or providing in-house AI training would also be eligible.

What they're saying: "This bipartisan bill will help workers build critical AI skills, boost productivity, and strengthen our economy — all while keeping the United States at the front of the pack," Gottheimer said.

The bottom line: Protecting and upskilling workers is a rare point of bipartisan agreement on AI policy.