The fight for the future of the Democratic Party will take place in nearly every Senate primary this cycle, pitting party leaders against progressive icons.

🥊 Why it matters: 2026 Dem-on-Dem battles will also provide an early look at the broader showdown the party will have in its 2028 presidential primary. • Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and DSCC Chair Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) have preferred candidates in Michigan, Maine and Iowa. • But Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), still the vanguard of the American left, is having none of it and campaigning for insurgents on a megawatt scale.

🥰 Zoom out: Schumer is reported to prefer Rep. Haley Stevens in Michigan. In Maine, he is urging Gov. Janet Mills (D-Maine) to run. And in Iowa, leaders are partial to state Rep. Josh Ture

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