南希·佩洛西（85岁）和贾里德·戈尔登（43岁）都是民主党国会议员，但差异显著：佩洛西代表一个人口稠密、偏左的城市选区，该区的家庭收入中位数超过戈尔登所在的稀疏人口、后工业缅因州选区的两倍以上，而特朗普在该缅因州选区轻松赢得了三次。戈尔登于2018年首次当选并投票反对佩洛西出任众议院议长；佩洛西在1987年育有五个孩子后首次参选，并在戈尔登宣布不再参选的次日宣布她也不再竞选。
尽管反对佩洛西的领导，戈尔登仍保有影响力：他获得了自己偏好的委员会席位，当筹款困难时，佩洛西私下动用了她的网络帮助。他提到安全和家庭——两个年幼的女儿以及多次死亡威胁导致家人在旅馆避难——作为他“害怕获胜”的理由。戈尔登是一名43岁的海军陆战队老兵，随身携带隐蔽手枪，他面临来自左翼的初选和艰难的大选，他的席位很可能在2026年易主。
温和派民主党人已缩减：众议院“蓝狗”党团从2009年的54名成员降至现在的10名，只有13名民主党人占据了特朗普赢得的选区。在2024年，特朗普赢得了2,660个县，而民主党得到了452个县，这显示了民主党在选举人团和参议院中对农村地区的劣势。戈尔登是唯一投票反对政府关门的民主党人，他对“极左”影响的批评凸显了党内在道德纯洁主义与佩洛西先求胜利的务实主义之间的冲突。
Nancy Pelosi (85) and Jared Golden (43) are both Democratic members of Congress but contrast sharply: Pelosi represents a dense urban left district with median household income more than twice that of Golden’s sparsely populated, post-industrial Maine district that Trump won easily three times. Golden was first elected in 2018 and voted against Pelosi for Speaker; Pelosi first ran in 1987 after raising five children and announced she would not seek another term the day after Golden said he would not run.
Despite opposition to Pelosi’s leadership, Golden retained influence: he secured preferred committee assignments and, when fundraising was hard, Pelosi quietly tapped her network. He cited safety and family—two young daughters and repeated death threats that led his family to shelter in a hotel—as reasons he "dreads the prospect of winning." Golden, a 43-year-old Marine veteran who carries a concealed handgun, faces a left primary and a difficult general contest and his seat is likely to flip in 2026.
Centrist Democrats have shrunk: the House Blue Dog caucus fell from 54 members in 2009 to 10 now, and only 13 Democrats hold districts Trump carried. In 2024 Trump carried 2,660 counties versus 452 for the Democrat, illustrating rural disadvantage for Democrats in the Electoral College and Senate. Golden’s lone Democratic vote against a government shutdown and his critique of 'far‑left' influence underline the party’s internal clash between moral purism and Pelosi’s win‑first pragmatism.