During the 2024 presidential election between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, the Democratic party establishment made the strange decision to swing right, in an apparent attempt to capture the mythical conservative-centrist vote. Republican stalwart Liz Cheney was trotted out before Democratic voters while policy proposals became more conservative, even as millions of young voters clamored for a more progressive ticket.

It didn’t work, obviously: Harris lost, and according to exit polls won just 5 percent of the Republican vote — a point less than Joe Biden had in 2020 — as working class voters turned out for Trump and young voters stayed home. The strategy only deepened the longstanding criticism that the Democratic establishment answers to its billionaire donors before its constituency.

Fast forward to 2026, and it’s clear the party remains a poor student of its own failures. According to the Financial Times, Democrats running in the 2026 midterm elections have been advised by party strategists not to antagonize pro-AI interests, even as polls show AI regulation is incredibly popular with voters.

Specifically, the Democratic establishment is telling politicians to play nice with any “pro-AI group” with over $300 million to toss around, evidently in an effort to court that money for the political machine. So far, only a small handful of progressive Democrats have made AI regulation a key part of their platform, as the majority of party functionaries bite their tongues.

“You are definitely seeing a chilling effect [on campaigns],” Alex Jacquez, former White House advisor and head of policy at Groundwork Collaborative told the FT. “There’s just not a lot of upside in the potential of getting $20mn [spent by pro-AI campaign groups] in your race…  in a lot of cases it is going to be easier to say nothing.”

While that may be a fair point from the campaign funding point of view, there’s also the actual election to consider. Democrats have a spotty track record courting voters against the Trump-aligned Republican bloc, and opposition to AI could be the ticket to securing an easy victory. According to a poll by Ipsos, 63 percent of Americans believe the federal government should play a stronger role in governing AI, with 67 percent of Democrats saying they want the government to ensure AI doesn’t cause harm.

Embracing AI could also be a way to court the Democrat’s long-lost — some would say nonexistent — centrist voters. According to the Ipsos poll, 63 percent of Republican voters agreed that the federal government should use a stronger hand to make sure AI companies don’t harm Americans. A further 56 percent of Republicans want the government to ensure AI outputs are accurate, compared to 51 percent of Democrats who say the same.

With small towns now pushing back against AI data centers en masse, the appeal clearly stretches far beyond the Democrats’ typical base. Opposition to big tech has never had a broader constituency, if only politicians would be willing to take a stand.

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