Elizabeth Warren jumps into Democratic primary battles across the country

Sen. Elizabeth Warren took sides in two competitive Senate primaries Thursday, part of a broadening play aimed at reshaping her party in a handful of important races — and fending off party leaders in one of 2026’s most critical battleground campaigns.

The Massachusetts senator on Thursday endorsed state Sen. Zach Wahls in the Iowa Senate race and oyster farmer and military veteran Graham Platner in Maine. On Wednesday, she endorsed Sen. Malloy McMorrow in Michigan’s hotly contested Democratic Senate primary.

Warren also put her stamp on other competitive Senate primaries, supporting Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey and Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, who won her state’s Democratic nomination on Tuesday.

“The best way to make big structural changes to cut costs and root out corruption in Washington is to elect more fighters to the United States Senate,” Warren said in a statement to NBC News. “These candidates inspire people with authentic, grassroots campaigns and they are leaders ready to fight on behalf of working families who are being crushed by a rigged system. »

Warren’s preferred candidates generally support populist policies, often criticizing billionaires and corporations, and reject contributions from corporate PACs. Warren also described each of them as a “fighter” when she announced her support.

Her support for Platner puts Warren at odds with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democratic Party’s campaign arm in the Senate, who are backing Gov. Janet Mills in the Democratic primary to take on Republican Sen. Susan Collins. This race is a must-win for Democrats hoping to flip the Senate, which would see a net gain of four seats in November.

Warren sharply criticized the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee earlier this year for failing, in her view, to support candidates who favor systemic economic change. DSCC Chair Kirsten Gillibrand rejected the criticism, saying she was “focused on winning and finding the best, most formidable candidate,” adding that the committee was also “looking for fighters.”

Warren’s endorsement also comes at a crucial time for Platner, after Mills launched his first attacks against him this week. Mills released a television ad highlighting 2013 social media posts in which Platner downplayed sexual assault. Platner issued a response saying the comments “are words and statements I hate from a time in my life when I was struggling deeply after returning from war” and “do not reflect who I am.”

“Look, he apologized for that and he talks to the people of Maine every day,” Warren told HuffPost on Thursday.

Having Warren’s support could be a useful boost among progressive female voters as Platner tries to fend off those attacks, said a Democratic strategist who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the primary dynamic.

“This is a progressive senator from a neighboring state, a woman who has played a leading role on all these really important issues,” the strategist said. “That’s exactly the support you’d want right now if you’re their campaign.”

Aside from the Maine race, the DSCC has not publicly endorsed a candidate in other competitive primaries in key Senate battlegrounds. But critics of the committee say party leaders quietly signaled their preferences. The New York Times reported that a group of senators, including Warren, formed a so-called “Fight Club” to compete in the primaries and counter possible influence from the DSCC and party leaders, including Schumer.

“Neither Senator Warren nor I have ever shied away from a tough fight, and that’s exactly why I’m so happy to have her on my side,” Wahls, an Iowa state senator, said in an interview Thursday afternoon when asked about the senator’s criticism of the DSCC.

Wahls said Warren’s support Thursday would be a boost for her primary, where she faces state Rep. Josh Turek. Two of Warren’s fellow Democrats in the Senate — Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, former chairwoman of the DSCC, and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire — endorsed Turek this week.

Wahls and Warren have known each other for years. He supported her 2019 presidential campaign after she expressed interest in an issue he was working on in the state Legislature: protecting Iowans living in mobile homes from investment companies seeking to take over trailer parks.

“She was ready to meet with my constituents and help elevate this fight against these predatory corporations to a national level,” Wahls said, noting that he and Warren have stayed in touch “periodically” since her 2020 presidential failure.

“When we launched this campaign for Senate, she gave me great advice about the importance of going everywhere, talking with everyone, thinking big about the challenges our state faces,” Wahls said.

Wahls wasn’t the only supporter of Warren’s presidential campaign to gain support this week. McMorrow, the Michigan state senator, also supported Warren’s candidacy in 2020. McMorrow recounted in a Substack article that she first connected with Warren by phone after McMorrow won her first state legislative race in 2018 and later supported Warren’s presidential campaign, writing that they have “remained close ever since.”

By supporting McMorrow, Warren distanced herself from another prominent progressive, Sen. Bernie Sanders. Sanders also supported Platner in Maine, but supports former Wayne County Health Director Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan. Democratic Representative Haley Stevens is the other leading candidate in this primary.

Like Sanders, Warren’s support comes with a fundraising boost, as she uses her large local fundraising list to help favored candidates.

Wahls was already seeing the increase just hours after Warren endorsed him, saying his campaign was on track to have its best fundraising day this month and potentially the best of the entire quarter so far.

A McMorrow campaign official said Warren’s support Wednesday coincided with one of the top five digital fundraising days for her campaign. Officials with Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan’s Senate campaign in Minnesota and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton’s campaign in Illinois also told NBC News that Warren’s endorsement also came with fundraising challenges.

“This is huge for a campaign that is building a digital fundraising program from the ground up,” said a senior member of Stratton’s campaign team.

Warren also helped campaign for her candidates, including Stratton, who won her primary on Tuesday. Warren campaigned with the Illinois lieutenant governor last week and appeared in social media videos with Stratton. In one video, Stratton showed Warren his “persist” tattoo, a nod to Warren’s viral moment in the Senate in 2017 when he opposed then-Sen. Jeff Sessions’, R-Ala., nominated for attorney general.

Warren also campaigned with Flanagan in Minnesota in August, drawing a crowd of about 1,500 supporters a year before the state’s primary. Flanagan is competing against Rep. Angie Craig in a primary that has also divided Senate Democrats and potential 2028 presidential candidates.

Warren also continued to play an active role in the Democratic Party, distributing more than $400,000 from her campaign to nearly two dozen state parties earlier this year. Warren told Politico at the time that the investments were not an early sign that she was considering another presidential campaign.

When asked if he would like to see her run for president again, Wahls said he was focused on his own primary race, which will take place on June 2.

“I’m so focused on the next 74 days that I haven’t even thought about 2028,” Wahls said. “I think if she ran, she would be a terrific candidate again.”