US Senate candidates deploy distance from Trump, personal attacks, and debate avoidance in midterm race
With 35 Senate seats contested in November's midterms, Republican candidates are splitting from Trump while Democratic and Republican opponents exchange sharp personal attacks, and some candidates are avoiding debate stages entirely.
What happened
Senate candidates in contested midterm races have engaged in heated debates over recent weeks marked by three patterns: Republican candidates are distancing themselves from President Trump at varying degrees—Susan Collins of Maine stated she voted against Trump 137 times and with President Biden 91% of the time, while Ashley Hinson of Iowa broke with Trump on a Russia fuel deal without fully separating herself from him. Second, candidates have deployed personal attacks; in Michigan, Mike Rogers questioned whether Democrat Abdul El-Sayed's family might be on watchlists while El-Sayed called Rogers a "sock puppet" for Trump; in Georgia, Jon Ossoff called Mike Collins a "bigot" who hired from "the Third Reich" after Collins' son-in-law posted antisemitic content. Third, in 21 of 35 Senate races, no debates are scheduled among main candidates; in Texas, Democrat James Talarico has accepted four debate invitations while Republican Ken Paxton, whom Trump backed in the Republican primaries, has not accepted any of those invitations, though Paxton's campaign spokesperson indicated in July that he would debate Talarico.
Context
The debate patterns reflect broader electoral dynamics as parties fight for congressional control ahead of November elections. Trump's low approval ratings and voter concern about cost of living and fuel prices appear to be driving Republican candidates' varied positioning relative to him—a Reuters analysis found two-thirds of competitive House and Senate candidates have broken with the president. The Texas Senate race holds particular stakes: polls in the typically Republican state suggest Democrat Talarico could be in reach of a surprise win, which could help Democrats flip one of four seats needed for Senate control. Candidates avoiding debates eliminate opportunities for opponents to make negative cases and potentially disadvantage themselves, according to political analysis cited in the reporting.
What's disputed
The source notes polling disagreement on Maine's Collins-Jackson race: a New York Times/Siena University poll from mid-September shows Collins ahead by 3%, while other polls indicate Jackson is in the lead.