As the 2026 midterm elections approach, the political battleground is heating up with massive spending and targeted campaigns from both sides of the aisle, each hoping to sway key Senate and House races in their favor. At the center of this escalating contest are two powerful forces: Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America (SBA) and its super PAC, and Majority Forward, a nonprofit closely aligned with Senate Majority PAC and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Both organizations have unveiled ambitious plans to pour millions into competitive states, signaling that abortion rights and healthcare costs will be front and center for voters next year.
On November 12, 2025, SBA Pro-Life America and its super PAC announced a staggering $80 million investment for the 2026 midterms, according to POLITICO and MSNBC. Their campaign, the latest in a series of high-dollar efforts since the Supreme Court’s 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade, aims to support pro-life candidates in at least four battleground states: Georgia, Iowa, Michigan, and North Carolina. The group’s strategy is as much about mobilizing its base as it is about expanding it. “Republicans simply cannot win without their pro-life base, especially in midterm elections when overall turnout drops,” SBA President Marjorie Dannenfelser told POLITICO.
The scale of SBA’s campaign is hard to overstate. The organization plans to contact 10.5 million voters nationwide through a blend of canvassing, digital advertising, voter contact mail, and early voting initiatives. Of particular note, the group will knock on some 4.5 million doors in the four targeted Senate battleground states, all of which also feature competitive House races. Student volunteers are set to be deployed across a dozen House battleground districts, and field organizers will focus on pro-life voters who have historically sat out midterms.
This $80 million commitment surpasses the $78 million SBA spent in the 2022 midterms but falls just short of the $92 million it pledged for the 2024 presidential cycle, as reported by POLITICO. The group’s mission, Dannenfelser explained, is to “fire up pro-life Americans who do not consistently vote in midterms and convince persuadable voters to reject the Democrats’ extreme all-trimester abortion agenda.”
Yet, the road ahead for the anti-abortion movement is not without obstacles. Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, anti-abortion advocates have faced a series of defeats at the ballot box, with voters in several states rejecting new restrictions. Still, SBA remains a potent force in Republican politics, aiming to reassert the influence of social conservatives within a party increasingly shaped by Donald Trump’s populist, MAGA-infused approach. According to a 2024 CNN exit poll cited by POLITICO, Trump won 92% of voters who believe abortion should be illegal in most cases, underscoring the importance of the pro-life bloc in tight races.
The group’s campaign is also a reaction to recent Democratic victories in places like New Jersey, California, and New York City. Anti-abortion advocates argue that, while their voters may be a minority, they could well provide the margin of victory in closely contested elections. SBA’s statement to POLITICO credited congressional anti-abortion victories with passing restrictions on federal Medicaid funding for organizations that provide abortions—a sign of the movement’s enduring policy clout, despite frustrations with Trump’s refusal to back a nationwide abortion ban and his support for expanding access to in vitro fertilization and abortion medications.
Meanwhile, Democrats are mounting their own well-funded offensive, with Majority Forward spending $1 million on ads targeting four Republican Senate candidates over healthcare costs and the looming expiration of enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits. As Axios reported on November 12, 2025, these ads are airing in Maine, Ohio, Alaska, and Iowa—states Democrats see as ripe for Senate pickups. The 30-second spots single out Senators Susan Collins (Maine), Jon Husted (Ohio), Dan Sullivan (Alaska), and Representative Ashley Hinson (Iowa) for not acting to prevent ACA tax credits from expiring at the end of 2025.
The stakes are high: if Congress fails to extend the enhanced subsidies, premiums for millions of ACA enrollees are set to more than double in 2026. The ads, which began airing on YouTube and digital streaming platforms on November 13, are part of a broader Democratic strategy to make healthcare costs a defining issue in the upcoming elections. The messaging capitalizes on the recent government shutdown fight, during which Senate Republicans promised a December vote on the credits—though even Democratic leaders admit the measure is unlikely to pass.
Majority Forward’s ad buy is notable for its timing and its targets. It marks the group’s first foray into the Ohio Senate race this cycle and its first ad aimed at Hinson in Iowa. Democrats are optimistic that President Trump’s low polling numbers are expanding the Senate map in their favor, giving them a shot at flipping seats in places that might have seemed out of reach just a few years ago.
Of course, Republicans are pushing back hard against the attacks. Joanna Rodriguez, Communications Director for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, told Axios, “This ad is an outright lie that tries to blame Republicans for a healthcare bill passed by Democrats that lined the pockets of big insurance companies while they raised prices on patients.” She added, “President Trump has committed to putting patients first and that’s what Republicans are going to do.” Some Senate Republicans, including Collins, have signaled a willingness to negotiate a solution to the premium hikes before the year’s end.
The broader campaign landscape is equally dynamic. As MSNBC reported in a nationwide roundup, the 2026 cycle is already seeing a wave of candidate announcements, retirements, and comebacks. In Maine, for instance, the Democratic primary field for the U.S. Senate has narrowed, and in Texas, Republican Rep. Jodey Arrington, chair of the House Budget Committee, announced he won’t seek reelection. Meanwhile, high-profile Democrats like former Rep. Elaine Luria are plotting returns, and even members of the Kennedy family are jumping into congressional races.
All told, the 2026 midterms are shaping up to be a referendum on some of the most contentious issues in American politics—abortion rights, healthcare costs, and the direction of both major parties. With tens of millions of dollars already committed and the campaign machinery whirring to life, voters in battleground states can expect a relentless barrage of messaging as both sides vie for every possible advantage. The outcome could well hinge on which side does a better job mobilizing its base and persuading the ever-elusive swing voter.
As the dust settles on early campaign maneuvers, one thing is clear: the fight for control of Congress in 2026 will be fierce, expensive, and deeply consequential for the future of American policy and politics.
