The 2026 midterm elections are now behind us, and the results are being described with all kinds of dramatic adjectives: a seismic shift, a tectonic shift, a historic landslide.
The blue wave has swept the Democrats into control of both houses of Congress, the Senate and the House of Representatives.
What are the implications? Every pundit, expert, and self-proclaimed expert is weighing in. What does this mean for President Trump’s final two years? How will it affect America, and what impact will it have on world events?
But I want to address something deeper. I believe the most important part of this story is missing from the conversation.
What does this election really tell us? Was it a vote against something, or a vote for something?
We all know that Donald Trump is a lightning rod. People either love him or hate him. So was this election a rebuke of Trump, his policies—or what some would call his lack of policies, his shifting positions and unpredictable approach? Was it a rejection and protest against the rising living costs, gas prices and war in Iran?
The Democrats, of course, would like us to believe this was a vote for their vision. But let’s ask a more fundamental question: What exactly is that vision? What are we being asked to embrace? What is the alternative? What do we stand for?
In a free society, people have every right to vote for whatever reasons they choose. And it’s perfectly legitimate for an election to be a vote against something. When people are unhappy, sometimes they simply want change. They say, let’s try something different and see where it takes us.
But I believe this election also exposes something much bigger: a tremendous void, a vacuum of leadership.
When was the last time you heard a truly expansive, monumental vision for the future? When was the last time a leader articulated something beyond putting out fires, reacting to the latest crisis, or applying another temporary band-aid?
Are we living through a crisis of leadership? Where is the vision for tomorrow?
We may know what we’re against. But do we know what we’re for? What do we stand for?
And perhaps even more important, we need to look at the bigger picture. This election is not simply a political blip on the screen. It is part of a much larger story.
When we look back at this period in history, I believe we will recognize it as the Age of Disruption.
Think about what we’ve experienced: COVID in 2020, the internet and the digital revolution, the explosion of technology and artificial intelligence, and all the changes they are bringing to our lives. Add to that the upheaval in American politics, the rise of Donald Trump, and the dramatic shifts taking place throughout the world.
We are living through a seismic shift, perhaps even a tectonic shift—one far greater than we can fully comprehend while we’re in the middle of it.
Because when you’re living through a historic transformation, you don’t always recognize it. You can’t see the forest for the trees.
That’s what we need to be discussing. Not simply who won and who lost, or what happens next politically, but what these events reveal, what they reflect about the human condition and our world, and what they tell us about the future.
There are tremendous insights we can draw from this moment—insights that can help us make better choices and decisions in our own lives, in our families, in our communities, and in the larger world.
So please join Rabbi Simon Jacobson as we explore The Age of Disruption: What the Elections Reveal About Our Future.
We know what we’re against. But do we know what we’re for?
Did America simply cast a vote—or was it expressing a much deeper cry for help?
