With Democrats taking control of Congress in 2027, leaders and advocates are calling for meaningful reforms to healthcare and policies that prioritize affordability.
Across the country, Democrats won sweeping victories in what is considered a rebuke of high gas and other prices amid the U.S. military conflict in Iran and President Donald Trump’s sinking approval rating.
Some Democratic leaders are calling for a focus on legislation that addresses affordability concerns and a shift away from partisanship. Rebecca Perkins Kwoka, leader of New Hampshire’s Senate Democrats, said lawmakers in the state would not focus on abortion expansion or marijuana legalization, rather on economic issues.
“We are focused on lowering costs and making sure that there are no distractions in the statehouse from doing the work the voters have asked us to do,” Kwoka said on a press call with The Center Square. “This is housing, childcare, lowering healthcare costs, lowering energy costs, lowering property taxes.”
One area where advocates have called for Democrats to pay attention is healthcare. In January, work requirements in the One Big Beautiful Bill will take effect, removing individuals from healthcare plans who do not align with the new work standards.
Casey Hite, CEO of Aeroflow Health, said most people are not aware about the extent to which they will lose healthcare coverage. Aerflow found 71% of members were concerned about the change to eligibility requirements and accidental coverage loss.
“The best case is that those requirements can be delayed, but time will tell,” Hite told The Center Square in an interview. “The election changed who holds the gavel, it doesn’t change the calendar.”
Hite said he is concerned that states across the country will not collect accurate information for Medicaid recipients to verify eligibility in federal healthcare programs.
“We’re going to have people losing coverage that shouldn’t otherwise lose coverage,” Hite warned.
Democrats are expected to face challenges when governing with a broad coalition. Erin Covey, an analyst at The Cook Political Report, highlighted the potential divide between Democratic Socialists of America candidates and moderate Democrats heading to Congress.
“I do think that [DSA members] were able to tap into a frustration with the system that a lot of more moderate establishment Democrats were a little bit slower to get on board with, but did by the time we kind of got into the general election,” Covey said.
Texas state Rep. Salman Bhojani said data centers will be a key focus for Democrats throughout the state in the upcoming year. Texas Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa focused on this issue throughout her campaign while data center development exploded in the state.
“My goal is to govern from the middle, not swing left or swing right, and give Republicans a seat at the table,” Bhojani said in a news conference. “Even though we don’t need them, I think we need to give a seat at the table, and because policy comes from both sides of the aisle. So I look forward to governing in the near future.”
Hite emphasized the importance of bipartisan healthcare policy moving forward in Congress. He projected optimism about legislation Democrats can work on in collaboration with President Donald Trump that will provide relief to patients across the country.
“The president knows how important healthcare is. He’s got two more years in office, he has a legacy that he wants to maintain and buttress,” Hite said. “He might very well sign legislation, if it makes sense.”
Trump has declared himself “Mr. Veto” while referring to his power to block legislation passed by Congress. As it stands, Democrats do not have enough votes in Congress to overcome a presidential veto.
Iowa Sen. Matt Blake said he would take the same bipartisan approach in the state legislature, after Democrats flipped the governorship and the Iowa House in the traditionally red state.
“We will be part of a working coalition of split government here, where we’re going to work across the aisle, work with Republicans and work with Democrats to try to find solutions for Iowans, covering issues that others have talked about: data centers, affordability, we’re going to tackle those,” Blake said.