The 2026 midterm elections saw a notable, albeit small, cohort of candidates from working-class backgrounds win or remain competitive, defying historical trends that show a significant underrepresentation of individuals from such professions in elected office. Out of 933 major-party candidates for Congress, only seven listed a working-class job as their most recent occupation. However, these candidates performed competitively, with some unseating incumbents and others running in districts that had previously voted against their party.
One such candidate, Troy Jackson, a logger, successfully flipped a U.S. Senate seat in Maine, unseating incumbent Republican Susan Collins. In the House of Representatives, two of the six major-party working-class candidates, Brian Poindexter (an iron worker) and Rebecca Cooke (a waitress), were declared winners in races for seats their parties had lost in 2024. Another, Sam Forstag (a smoke jumper), was leading as final votes were tallied.
Research indicates that when candidates with working-class roots run for office, they generally perform as well as other candidates. In the 2026 midterms, Democratic House candidates from working-class backgrounds, on average, outperformed their party's other candidates in their districts. The sole Republican working-class House candidate, Tim Rogers, performed below the national average for his party.
Despite these successes, the scarcity of working-class candidates in politics persists. Historically, jobs such as construction worker, restaurant server, or receptionist, which constitute over half of the labor force, have been represented by less than 3% of Congress and less than 2% of state legislatures. This disparity has consequences, as a lack of working-class representation can lead to decreased public trust in government and economic policies that favor the affluent over the concerns of working people.
The primary reason for this underrepresentation is not voter disapproval, but the fact that fewer working-class individuals run for office in the first place. The demanding nature of political campaigns—requiring time off work, surrendering control over daily life, and risking one's reputation—poses significant personal burdens that are harder for working-class individuals to shoulder. Political party leaders and interest groups often recruit candidates, and they tend to favor professionals perceived to have an easier path to victory, often overlooking qualified workers.
Models for increasing working-class representation exist, such as the New Jersey AFL-CIO Labor Candidates School, which has a high success rate in recruiting and training such candidates. Other approaches include parties forming institutional partnerships with unions, modifying election rules, or utilizing methods like randomly selected citizen assemblies to incorporate diverse viewpoints.