Johnson warns Democrat midterm victory would unlock sweeping socialist power: ‘2026 is different’

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) on Friday made an eleventh-hour appeal to voters, warning that handing Democrats wins in the midterm elections would empower socialists to make sweeping changes to the American way of life.In an op-ed for USA Today, the top House Republican described what he sees as the dangers of voting Democrats into power on Nov. 3, as undecided and more centrist voters weigh which party they will back on Tuesday. Johnson said the Democratic Party is increasingly vulnerable to takeover from the growing socialist movement, which he said would “tear down the American system,” comparable to the riots sweeping France.“A Democratic victory in the midterms would inevitably cede unprecedented power to this growing socialist cadre, whose stated aim is to remake the party and end the free market system,” Johnson wrote. “The chaos unfolding in France is a dark harbinger of what could happen here if Democrats take back the House. What generations built over centuries can be torn down in a few years.” In the House, Democrats need to net a three-seat gain to take the majority from Johnson. On the Senate side, Democrats need to claim a net of four seats, and are eyeing possible pickups in Ohio, Alaska, Maine, Iowa, and North Carolina, among other states.Democrats have sought to put the GOP on the defensive by targeting the Iran war and economy, which are top issues for voters, particularly as gas prices remain high due to the Middle Eastern conflict.As the party in power in the midterm elections, Republicans are projected to see losses in Washington, if history is any indicator of the results. Polling and forecasts from election experts such as the Cook Political Report appear to indicate the GOP is highly vulnerable to losing majorities in both chambers of Congress.Johnson, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), and President Donald Trump have decried such predictions as “fake.”If they prove true, Johnson warned Friday, the win for Democrats could cede power to socialists. Johnson said the power shifts could cause a deep tear in the country’s framework of “essential first principles: individual liberty, limited government, the rule of law and the inherent dignity of every person.”THE SENATE SEAT MOST LIKELY TO FLIP“The Democratic Party keeps pushing further left and courting a new generation of voters energized by the Democratic Socialists of America and its false promise of a progressive utopia,” Johnson said.“Throughout our nation’s history, midterm elections have normally been a referendum on the president. But these are not normal times,” he added. “House Republicans understand that to win the midterms, we need to defy history. But we also understand that 2026 is different. It presents an unprecedented and fateful question: Will we reject and tear down the American system, or will we keep building on what made our nation the most exceptional the world has ever seen?”