The underdogs who won against all odds in the Democrats' midterm wave

From North Carolina to Arizona, Democratic candidates with almost no public profile were stunned at their election triumphs. One candidate had dropped out in September. One had no campaign staff. One was a 19-year-old and halfway through the fall college semester. Yet on Tuesday they outperformed their opponents and were swept into Congress and statehouses.

The blue wave knocked out Republicans from seats considered untouchable in deep-red districts. In Tennessee's fourth congressional district, Democrat Victoria Broderick ousted Republican incumbent Scott DesJarlais, who was seeking his ninth term. The prominent US election forecaster Cook Political Report rated it as a solid Republican district, and almost nobody in Washington thought DesJarlais could lose.

Speaking on Wednesday after state officials declared she had won by about 300 votes, Broderick said: It's very surreal. Her first words to her team, she said, were: Wait, what? She was just sitting there shocked. The Associated Press hasn't yet called her race.

Broderick, 34, is a mother of two who worked a full-time job in tech support throughout her longshot campaign. She previously worked as a logistics sourcing coordinator. She first ran for Congress in 2024, after learning DesJarlais was running unopposed. That year DesJarlais won 70% of votes, compared to her 27%.

The Tennessee legislature redrew its congressional maps earlier this year and made the fourth district slightly more Democratic, by including parts of Nashville. But Trump still would have won the current iteration of the district by 24 points in 2024. Broderick said she connected with residents who hadn't voted in years and met Republicans who were concerned about affordability and appreciated the integrity she brought to the race.

We've been neglected in this district, she said. People want representatives who understand what they're going through, who understand the costs of going to the gas station or grocery store. I'm that representative. With just 400 followers on X as of Wednesday, Broderick pulled ahead without support from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the party's campaign and fundraising arm for the House. She had also been outspent roughly 12 to one during her primary, she added.

Another extraordinary result came in Iowa. Democrat Eric Armstrong won his race for state representative despite having dropped out in early September, when he cited personal health issues that require my full attention and immediate care. Even though Armstrong did not campaign for the last two months, he defeated Republican Keith Jones, a county supervisor and retired police lieutenant, by more than 800 votes.

Armstrong told the New York Times in a phone call on Wednesday morning that he would do his best to represent the district, but that he still has health issues. Jones said by phone Thursday that he was stunned by his loss: It was a gut-punch. He said he had worked really hard for eight months, and that the blue wave hit Iowa and Texas very hard. He said voters were concerned with the Iran war and gas prices, issues he couldn't address as a state representative, adding: It's hard to lose a race based on events outside of my control.

In Arizona, Sebastian Matta, a 19-year-old college student studying philosophy, defeated Jeff Dial, a 50-year-old Republican former state lawmaker, in the race to be Maricopa county clerk of the superior court. Matta told the Arizona Republic that he noticed Democrats had not run for the office in years. He said he thought: You know, why not? He expected it would be a destined loss for Democrats, but now he is set to lead the court's clerk's office for the nation's fourth-largest county.

Some of the unexpected candidates weren't prepared when they heard news of their success. Broderick said she was supposed to go to work that day, and had to message her boss. They are candidates with almost no public profile who won seats long thought untouchable.

These victories are more than the story of a few seats. Across the US, Democratic candidates have been swept into Congress and statehouses on the blue wave, and long-held Republican strongholds have fallen one by one. Candidates who won without campaign staff, after dropping out, or with only 400 followers have now become the face of that wave.