The 2026 midterm elections are historic. Voters resoundingly rejected an agenda of authoritarianism fueled by hate, fear, and violence. This rejection comes after years of organizing to build trust, deepen care, and cultivate the collective power to turn toward a world where all people belong and thrive. The 2026 midterms mark a turning point in our ongoing struggle for a multiracial democracy.
This election is historic, but it is not over. Democracy requires all of us, and we must continue our work until every vote is counted and every election is certified.
In our faith, democracy is sacred. It commits us to a faithful practice of covenant, in which we recognize one another as sacred. Sacred, in the sense that we are too important to be treated lightly. Beloved, our lives, our dignity, our material and spiritual needs, and our struggles are not to be treated lightly. This is central to our covenantal practice as a faith tradition: a commitment to one another and to the promise to put love at the center.
This election has shifted our political landscape in consequential ways. In the face of a decades-long campaign to dismantle Black political power, Black voters across the South turned out in record numbers. Amid the rollback of abortion rights, voters in states like Virginia and Missouri continued the movement to secure abortion protections. Despite threats of violence, the frustration of disenfranchisement, and the exhaustion of years of struggle, communities and voters came together to reach toward a new day.
This year, UU the Vote was grounded in a call to ignite solidarity and reimagine democracy. Together, we took up the work of supporting voters at the polls, reaching voters by phone and at their doors, creating spiritual gatherings to sustain us, and convening Solidarity Summits to build the power and infrastructure behind our commitments. We harnessed our collective power to ensure that voters had the final say in these elections, so that we could continue building a democracy in which all of us can thrive. But, Beloveds, we are not there yet.
In several states, voters approved measures targeting trans young people and denying them the care they need. Others passed measures that infringe upon religious freedom. And our nation still reckons with an election season rife with Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, racism and cruelty. Our work is not done. We remain steadfast in our belief that every body is sacred and that trans, nonbinary, and intersex people have a fundamental right to live with dignity, safety, and equality.
We are unwavering in our Universalist call to abolish every hell on earth:
The hell of economic systems that sacrifice people and the earth at the altar of greed.
The hell of an American legacy of families separation and human trafficking.
The hell of apartheid states that worship supremacy and rejoice in violence.
And the hell of the greatest lie of all: that we are alone and do not belong to one another.
Unitarian Universalists stand in a radical tradition of choosing love, not because victory is guaranteed, but because our faith calls us to work toward it. And no movement can sustain that work without a North Star toward which we collectively reach.
This election is not our North Star, but it is a critical stop along our journey toward the justice that now feels closer. Keep reaching.
The justice we seek is closer not because of any political party, but because people came together to make their voices heard and speak the truth about the conditions under which we are living. As Ida B. Wells reminds us, “The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them.”
We are here, in this moment, because people refused the lies and turned the light of truth upon them. Let this truth carry us through this turning.
As we reach together toward a new day, let us remember that democracy is not a one-time action. It is a continuous practice, one that cannot be sustained alone. In this moment, let us reach toward our migrating and trans siblings and every neighbor this election has left more vulnerable. Let us reach toward communities whose rights and voices continue to be silenced under our current laws. And let us reach toward ourselves, knowing that we all deserve care, joy, rest, and the space to discern our roles in what comes next.
Thank you for all your faithful work and for the many ways this community has shown up and continues to show up.
Turning toward one another was the choice we made.
Reaching together toward love is the choice we keep making, together.
In faith and solidarity,
The Side With Love Team
