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By Steve Mollman
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Democratic Senator-elect Adam Hamilton, who pulled off a historic victory in deep-red Kansas, warned his party Sunday that its midterm “blue wave” could be “one and done” if Democrats fail to deliver quickly for Americans struggling with the cost of living.
Hamilton, a Methodist pastor who defeated Republican Senator Roger Marshall, became the first Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate from Kansas since 1932. His victory was one of the most dramatic results of Tuesday's midterms, coming in a state President Donald Trump carried by more than 16 points in 2024.
Appearing on NBC News' Meet the Press with Kristen Welker, Hamilton argued Democrats should not interpret their sweeping midterm victories as an endorsement of the party itself.
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“This wasn't, you know, a rousing endorsement of Democrats,” Hamilton said. “It was a huge repudiation of what's happening in Washington D.C.”
He added that Democrats now have to demonstrate quickly that they can govern.
“We've got to make sure we've got a clear message that speaks to American people. And then we've got to deliver,” Hamilton said. “So in the first 100 days, we've got to deliver on a lot of these promises.”
His bluntest warning came as he discussed what Democrats should prioritize after winning control of Congress.
“If I spent the next two years, my first two years in the Senate in investigations, I'd be deeply disappointed,” Hamilton said. “I want to get to work helping the people in my state and helping the people across the country.”
He continued: “If we don't figure that out and get to work on helping people, this is going to be a one-and-done kind of, you know, blue wave.”
Hamilton's warning carries particular weight given the historic nature of his victory. Kansas had not elected a Democratic senator in 94 years, and Hamilton ousted an incumbent Republican in a state long considered reliably Republican before the race became competitive.
Newsweek reached out to representatives for Hamilton, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democratic National Committee for comment on Sunday.
Adam Hamilton Warns Democrats Against Focusing on Trump Investigations
Hamilton said Democrats' priority should instead be affordability, including energy costs and Trump's tariffs.
He also expressed little enthusiasm for a third impeachment of Trump.
“I'm not as interested in impeachment as setting up guardrails,” Hamilton told moderator Kristen Welker, adding: “I don't want to see us spend the next two years dividing our country further.”
Hamilton’s comments echo a warning former Senator Joe Manchin issued to Democrats before the midterms.
“If they start with investigations, Michael, it’s over,” Manchin told CNN host Michael Smerconish last month. “They’re going to tee up everything in 2028 for a Republican takeover completely.”
Manchin urged Democrats to concentrate on legislation aimed at reducing Americans' cost of living rather than becoming “consumed with retaliation and retribution,” arguing that an investigations-first approach could ultimately return Republicans to power in 2028.
Hamilton had already staked out a similar position before his upset victory, telling voters that he was “not going to Washington to hold trials.”
“I'm going to Washington to fight for the people of Kansas and make life better for them,” he said.
The question has divided Democrats. Some have supported investigating or impeaching Trump, while others have warned that doing so could overwhelm the party's economic agenda. Before the election, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries declined to rule out impeachment and said Democrats would investigate potential wrongdoing.
Since the election, Jeffries has emphasized affordability while maintaining that Democrats can also pursue accountability. “The American people don't want us to get even. They want us to get things done on their behalf,” he said Wednesday on MS NOW's Morning Joe. “We ran on affordability. We won on affordability. And now it's our job to govern on affordability.” Asked about congressional oversight, he said Democrats should “follow the facts, apply the law, be guided by the Constitution, let the chips fall where they may” while ensuring Congress “works to deliver for the American people at all times.”
Adam Hamilton Says Democratic Brand Is ‘Damaged’
Hamilton's warning went beyond impeachment and investigations. He argued that Democrats should resist treating their midterm victories as evidence that voters have broadly embraced the party.
“The Democratic brand has been damaged in America,” Hamilton said. “And I think it's really important that Democrats recognize that and say, ‘What are we going to do to address this?’”
He said Democrats should try to appeal to voters around the political center and demonstrate that they can work with Republicans.
“I think the vast majority of Americans are somewhere right or left of center,” he said. “And we've got to be able to speak to that vast majority and bring people together.”
That argument is particularly notable coming from Hamilton. In Kansas, he ran as a centrist focused on affordability and appealing to independents and moderate Republicans, then ended a 94-year Democratic drought in the state's Senate elections.
Hamilton said Sunday that voters who backed him were responding not simply to Democratic politics but to dissatisfaction with Washington.
“There were a lot of people in Kansas, like across the United States, who were saying, what's happening in Washington D.C. is not okay,” he said.
He pointed to fuel and fertilizer costs, tariffs, healthcare and food assistance as issues that resonated during the campaign.
“But I think it was also a sense of common decency,” Hamilton said.
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Adam Hamilton Opposes Chuck Schumer as Democratic Leader
Hamilton also reaffirmed that he does not plan to support Chuck Schumer as Senate Democratic leader, saying Democrats need “fresh and new ideas.”
“At least where I live in Kansas, he's a kind of polarizing figure,” Hamilton said.
He said he wanted a leader “who can lead from the center, somebody who can bring Republicans and Democrats together, somebody who can bring the various factions in Democratic Party together, somebody with fresh ideas.”
Hamilton stopped short of naming a preferred alternative, saying he does not yet know enough senators well enough to endorse someone.
The remarks underscored the broader message Hamilton delivered Sunday: Democrats won a historic opportunity in the midterms, but he believes the party could quickly lose it if it treats voters' rejection of Republicans as enthusiasm for Democrats.
“If we can't do that, then we will have failed,” Hamilton said of Democrats delivering on their promises. “And I think this is a huge opportunity for Democrats.”
Newsweek reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.
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