Midwest Regional Recap: Ground Game + AI in Focus
At the 2025 Midwest Regional Conference in Cincinnati, 100 consultants gathered to dissect the strategies—and shifts—reshaping the heartland heading into the 2026 cycle. From voter identity changes to the evolving role of AI, the message was clear: campaigns that win will be those that combine smart tools with a real ground game.
“You can have a great message and money to build it—but if your candidate doesn’t connect, it doesn’t matter.”
— Midwest panelist
Key Themes:
- Midwest Battlegrounds
Cities like Detroit, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, and Cincinnati are pivotal in 2026 flip scenarios. Watch for “sleeper races” that could swing control of Congress. - Party Realignment
The working-class voter base continues to shift. Once solidly Democratic, blue-collar voters are now leaning Republican, especially in manufacturing-heavy areas. Add to that the steady erosion of party ID—“more and more people aren’t affiliated”—and the Midwest is becoming a test kitchen for new strategies. - AI in Consulting
AI is already embedded in campaign workflows—powering tools like message resonance testing dashboards, using behavioral data to predict donor engagement, and ad sequencing strategies to avoid media saturation. But while the tech offers new efficiencies, concerns around data ethics and compliance persist. As Lauren Dikis (New Blue Interactive) cautioned, “I’m not putting anything into ChatGPT that I wouldn’t want printed on the front page of the newspaper.”
“AI can show you where to go—but it won’t knock on the door.”
— Midwest panelist