What exactly Democrats have pledged to do if they win in the midterms

If Democrats can win control of either the House or the Senate, they will have seized some control of Washington back from President Donald Trump and Republicans.

They will have powerful new tools to conduct oversight and investigate Trump’s government; a seat at the table when it comes to government spending; and potentially a mandate to undo some of the changes he has imposed or push for AI regulation he has opposed.

While House Democrats may pass several partisan bills as a show of their priorities, there are limits to what the caucus would actually be able to accomplish. And maintaining unity and resolve would take work, especially since Trump, barred by the Constitution from seeking a third term, might not be willing to work with Democrats to keep the government functioning.

“What happens is I veto everything, and then the Democrats come and they want to make a deal,” Trump said last week of the prospect of working with a Democratic-majority Congress.

Any measures that the Democrats really want to become law would likely have to be part of must-pass legislation, such as the annual appropriations bills. And that would take negotiating with Republicans, at least in the Senate, since the Democrats are not expected to gain enough seats in that chamber to approve bills without GOP votes.

Here’s a look at some of the power Democrats could gain with a House or Senate majority, and what they would be able to do with it.

Cost of living

It was the affordability crisis and inflation that turned voters against President Joe Biden, and it may end up being inflation and affordability that turn voters against Trump. Democrats are promising a new focus on affordability, but there may be little they can do while Trump is president. There’s little chance they could gain the kind of majority that would allow them to overturn his veto. That means effort to pare back Trump’s tariffs or end his war on Iran would require help from Republicans.

The top Democrat in the House, Hakeem Jeffries, has said his party is creating working groups to explore how to bring down prices in five areas: housing, healthcare, caregiving, gas and utilities, and groceries and goods.

Jeffries has cited three immediate goals:

► Ending the war to bring down energy prices.

► Undoing cuts to Medicaid in the Republican tax and spending cuts bill, and renewing Obamacare’s enhanced premium subsidies to address health care costs…

► Repeal Trump’s tariffs to bring down the costs of goods…

But again, those things would require unlikely buy-in from Trump.

The power of the purse will be Democrats’ leverage

Democrats’ main power point would be over the spending of taxpayer dollars, which means their leverage to force Trump to do things would be through the threat of taking away money. Trump will need legislation from Congress in order to keep the government running, although he has already overseen multiple protracted and unpopular lapses in funding during his presidencies.

Republicans sought to inoculate his immigration policy from Democrats by approving funding for the Department of Homeland Security to get through his term. Democrats could try to undo that funding, but they will likely lack votes to override Trump’s veto and they may have little control over how his DHS, flush with funding, goes about its business.

Another expected clash will be over the debt ceiling. Republicans raised the debt ceiling by $5 trillion when they passed Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act — yes, the tax cuts bill added a lot of money to the national debt. It’s expected that the debt ceiling will have to be raised again in 2027.

Look for Democrats to use their power over funding to stall or stop Trump’s DC projects, which he argues are necessary to beautify the capital, but which Democrats see as vanity projects. This is probably why Trump’s administration is trying to move quickly on things like the triumphal arch and the championship-level golf course he wants to use taxpayer money to build.

But Democrats also would have to deal with the reality that reversing or modifying some of the sweeping cuts in the “big, beautiful bill” will cost a lot of money, a daunting hurdle even for many in the caucus at a time when the national debt has topped $40 trillion.

Healthcare

Continuing the enhanced premium subsidies to Affordable Care Act enrollees has been a top priority for Democrats for the past two years. They shut down the government for a record 43 days last fall in an effort to pressure GOP leaders to extend the more generous assistance, which lapsed at the end of 2025.

The enhanced subsidies’ expiration sent premium payments soaring 58% this year, and several million people have dropped their coverage.

But the cost alone would be daunting — a permanent extension could cost $350 billion over a decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

As for reversing the historic Medicaid cuts in the GOP’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Democrats would have to decide which of the multiple measures to target. The first-ever federal work requirement is expected to lead to the largest loss of coverage, but it would be a big lift to remove the mandate, which is set to kick in on January 1 in most states. Democrats might seek to delay or soften some of the provisions in the law and regulations, such as those related to self-attestation, medical frailty and provider taxes.

That’s not to say that Democrats would just sit back as the Medicaid cuts take effect. They are expected to actively monitor the rollout of the provisions and publicize their impact on enrollees and other Americans, hospitals, and states, among others.

It’s also likely that they would push the Trump administration for more details on its “Most Favored Nation” deals with drugmakers. Trump would like them codified into law, but there are a lot of questions about the details of the agreements and whether they have actually driven down costs for patients.

While several progressive Democratic candidates have pushed for Medicare for All on the campaign trail, don’t expect the caucus to move forward on an expansion of Medicare to more Americans in the coming Congress.

Investigations

Oversight is likely to be one of the most immediate and visible consequences of any Democratic takeover of either the House or the Senate. With the majority comes the power to call hearings and subpoena witnesses.

Expect Democrats to launch inquiries into Elon Musk, for starters. Many questions remain about the so-called Department of Government Efficiency he launched with Trump’s blessing. Contracts awarded to Musk’s companies could also be scrutinized.

Trump’s efforts to effectively shut down agencies created by Congress like USAID, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Education will likely get their first real scrutiny by lawmakers.

So will the actions of Trump’s children to make money during their father’s presidency. Trump has made more than $1 billion on crypto at a time when he could be overseeing its regulation.

His most controversial policies, like the Iran war, mass deportation and tariffs, will be put under the microscope.

Cabinet members like Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Attorney General Todd Blanche will also need to make more time on their calendars for public hearings and their agencies will face more scrutiny from congressional committees.

Iran war

There will be bipartisan support for ending the war, but forcing Trump to abandon the project will be complicated. The War Powers Act seemingly requires congressional approval for prolonged military action, but Trump has found ways around those provisions. Plus, it would take 67 votes — which would mean help from Republicans — to override Trump’s veto. Republicans will be under immense pressure to pass a massive war funding bill in the lame duck period after the election but before new lawmakers take office in January. But the question of Pentagon funding and whether spending bills can be used to control war policy will become a major issue. If the war continues to be unpopular, pressure from Congress and the public will be hard for Trump to continue to ignore.

Food stamps

In an effort to blunt the Republicans’ historic cuts to food stamps, Democrats are expected to target a provision of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that will require states to shoulder a portion of the benefit costs if they have high rates of payment errors. Currently, the federal government covers the entire tab, but that will change next October for many states.

Democrats have already been pushing for a two-year delay to this measure as part of the Farm Bill. The Senate Agriculture Committee has passed a one-year delay but included an increase in the penalty rate for states with the highest error rate, which Democrats oppose. It’s unclear whether the Farm Bill will become law before this Congress’ term ends at the end of December.

The error rate provision has prompted some states to tighten their application and renewal processes and to add more paperwork requirements. That has contributed to more than 5.5 million people losing benefits since Trump signed the bill into law in July 2025, according to the Food Research & Action Center.

Still, the measure could take a big bite out of state budgets next year at a time when many aren’t flush with funds. That could prompt states to take even more drastic actions, which could lead to more coverage losses.

College education

Democrats will seek to draw a contrast between themselves and Republicans, who reduced the amount of federal loans graduate students and parents can take out and made student loan repayment plans less generous for many borrowers, said Jon Fansmith, senior vice president for government relations at the American Council on Education.

That might include forcing congressional Republicans to take tough votes to keep the stricter rules or requiring Trump to veto the package.

Meanwhile, they may try to address a controversial Department of Education rule that subjects nurses, physician assistants, physical therapists and certain other healthcare professionals to lower loan limits than doctors. There may be bipartisan support to change that rule, considering the shortage of healthcare professionals in the US.

Democrats could also hold oversight hearings on the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the Department of Education and shift its responsibilities to other agencies. They would likely look into whether these moves are helping or hurting students and their educations.

Social Security and Medicare

Don’t expect Democrats to advance any serious measures in the next year to address the looming insolvency of the Social Security and Medicare trust funds, which are projected to be drained in the early 2030s. Neither party is expected to tackle this complex and sensitive issue until closer to the deadline.

Democrats may float bills that seek to shore up the programs’ fiscal health to make it clear what their fixes would entail. They generally support lifting the income threshold on Social Security payroll taxes that would subject more of higher earners’ pay to the levy. Some would also expand benefits, such as making the annual cost-of-living adjustment more generous or increasing the minimum monthly payment.

Addressing Medicare’s financial problems will be more complicated. Democrats have supported expanding benefits, such as adding dental, vision and hearing coverage. They have also looked at ways to save the program money, such as rein in reimbursements for Medicare Advantage insurers — though not all of those would help the Medicare Part A trust fund.

Where Trump might work with Democrats

Jeffries came under some scrutiny from Democrats when he met this year with Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner about areas where the two sides could work together. The two talked about housing and criminal justice reform. Housing in particular could be an area where Democrats and Republicans negotiate.

Trump himself has also talked with Democratic New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani about housing and infrastructure projects. During his first term, Trump’s major bipartisan achievement was passing the First Step Act, an effort that brought together Democrats and Republicans in the months after voters gave control of the House back to Democrats during Trump’s first term midterm election.