Progressive groups, emboldened by grassroots outrage at the older Democratic establishment, are preparing to go all in on unseating veteran lawmakers in favor of a younger generation.

Why it matters: That's going to create a big headache for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries as he takes another stab at winning a speaker-making majority in 2026.

• Bitter primary battles threaten to deplete Democrats' resources ahead of the general election and deepen an already acute intraparty fissure.
• They'll also present Jeffries with the delicate task of defending incumbents who could end up losing to future members of his caucus.

Driving the news: Three months into the new Congress, more than half a dozen House Democrats already are facing primary challengers. That number is about to skyrocket.

• DNC vice chair David Hogg, whose group Leaders We Deserve is spending $20 million to primary incumbents to the chagrin of many House Democrats, told us: "Some truly generational leaders will be announcing their campaigns very soon."
• Usamah Andrabi, a spokesperson for Justice Democrats, told Axios that "dozens" of House Democrats could end up drawing serious challengers, adding, "It could be a large portion of the caucus."
• "I have talked to folks who have been thinking about jumping into these primary races who haven't come out yet," said Amanda Litman, founder of Run For Something. "There are more coming."

🧮 By the numbers: At least seven House Democrats — nearly all north of 70 years old — are already staring down primary challenges from younger insurgents.

• In some cases, the age gap is yawning: 85-year-old former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is facing 39-year-old political operative and software engineer Saikat Chakrabarti.
• Of this group, three incumbents, including Pelosi, have not said whether they will seek reelection in 2026.

The others — Reps. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), André Carson (D-Ind.) and Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) — are running, spokespeople told Axios.

• So is Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

📢 Jeffries, in a Sunday appearance on ABC's "This Week," said he looks forward to "standing behind every single Democratic incumbent."

Yes, but: These primary battles are just the latest front in a generational civil war that has been tearing the Democratic Party apart for the better part of a year.

• Then-President Biden's withdrawal from the Democratic ticket last July was a watershed moment.
• That was followed by House Democrats breaking with tradition and pushing out three of their oldest committee leaders, including Scott.
• Now, Hogg's plan to challenge incumbents while a DNC official has further fanned the flames of intraparty discord.

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— Andrew Solender

Chuck Schumer is battering and bashing New York Republicans in their own backyards to help Jeffries become speaker.

Why it matters: The Senate minority leader is making peace with his House Democratic counterpart by waging a shared war against Republicans.

Over the recess, Schumer visited a hospital in a district represented by Rep. Mike Lawler, a nursing home in Rep. Nick Langworthy's district and a Veterans Affairs field office in a county represented by Rep. Claudia Tenney.

• 🥊 The tour is part of Democrats' strategy to bring the fight directly to Republicans' doorsteps ahead of the 2026 midterms.
• Standing in a local business in GOP Rep. Nick LaLota's Long Island district today, Schumer argued Trump's tariffs are suffocating small businesses in the state.
• "No matter what your vantage ... the tariffs are one giant mess," he said.

Between the lines: Schumer's two-week New York offensive is another sign the two Democratic leaders are working to patch up a relationship that publicly frayed this year.

Zoom in: Schumer and other Democrats hope that by forcing Republicans to defend cuts to popular programs like Medicaid, they'll secure enough moderate defectors to scuttle the GOP plans.

• That would deprive their opponents of a major campaign promise — extending President Trump's first-term tax cuts — just in time for the midterms.

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— Stephen Neukam

House Speaker Mike Johnson is seeing an improvement in his net favorability rating, while Schumer is heading in the opposite direction.

Why it matters: Both party leaders, along with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, are underwater.

• ⭐️ Jeffries has the best score of the four, with essentially a neutral reading — 29.2% approval and 28.8% disapproval.

By the numbers: Johnson's 30.1%-36.3% favorable/unfavorable rating is up 1.8 percentage points since January, according to Real Clear Politics' average of surveys from Jan. 9 to April 15.

• Schumer, who has been pilloried by progressives for backing a GOP plan to fund the government, has the highest negative rating, with a 27.4%-45.6% reading. That's down 1.2 percentage points.
• Jeffries and Thune have remained more consistent, barely registering any change.

— Hans Nichols and Kathleen Hunter