Pollsters see two parties racing toward a concrete wall on tragic anniversary

On a special edition of “The Zogby Report: Real Polling in Real Time” marking the 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks, pollsters John Zogby and his son Jeremy Zogby opened with a solemn reflection on the heroes and enduring trauma of that day before pivoting to a sharply critical analysis of the 2026 midterm elections—a political environment they described as defined by broken promises, record costs, and a deeply frustrated electorate.

John Zogby, founder and senior partner of John Zogby Strategies, began by honoring the memory of the nearly 3,000 lives lost and the first responders who have continued to suffer decades later.

“Those are etched in our memories and in our hearts, and will be forever,” he said.

Jeremy Zogby, who hosted a three-hour radio program earlier that morning dedicated to the anniversary, spoke of the bravery of first responders who rushed into the rubble knowing the catastrophic risks. He noted the ongoing toll—rare cancers, dementia, and other diseases now afflicting those who served at Ground Zero.

“These were men and women who were dedicated to giving it their best shot, even if they knew that their brothers and sisters were gone,” said Jeremy Zogby.

From that somber start, the conversation shifted to the high-stakes political moment. With the midterms now in earnest, John Zogby laid out a litany of what he called broken promises from the current administration.

The price of fuel, he noted, was supposed to be heading downward by August. Instead, Labor Day set a record national average of $4 per gallon for the first time, and eleven days later it had climbed to $4.22. Inflation, promised to be receding, came in at an annual pace of 3.4% for August—well above and rising.

The war with Iran, which the president promised would end, now shows every sign of becoming an all-out regional conflict, with Houthi attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure, an east-west pipeline ablaze, and the Strait of Hormuz seeing very few ships pass through. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve is seriously considering raising interest rates to stem inflation.

The president, John Zogby continued, called a GOP midterm convention in Dallas ostensibly to rally the MAGA base, but many candidates in competitive races did not show up, choosing to distance themselves from a president who insists on making the midterms all about himself.

In six key battleground states, Democrats are leading—yet the races remain surprisingly close.

“Why would it even be close with the litany that I just read to you?” John Zogby asked.

Jeremy Zogby said none of this should be surprising.

He recalled that the plan to invade seven countries was written decades ago by Benjamin Netanyahu, and that by early 2026, six of those nations had already experienced regime change.

The seventh—Iran—was the inevitable final target.

“Our intelligence agencies said there was no credible threat,” Jeremy noted, “that whatever uranium the Iranians were enriching was for nuclear energy, not bombs.”

The president, he suggested, listened to Netanyahu anyway. The war now has no scope for ending, and its spillover effects—on oil markets, on diesel prices now at $6 a gallon, on the possibility of a $5 national average for gas—are hitting American households hard.

Turning to political strategy, Jeremy Zogby offered a blunt assessment of the president’s tactics.

The president had planned to brand Democrats as rabid socialists, but then turned around and promised $5,000 checks to every American if Republicans win the midterms.

“Make no mistake about it, that’s like socialism, isn’t it?” Jeremy said. “The president is shooting himself in the foot.”

The only viable path for Republicans in battleground races, he argued, would be to detach themselves from a president who has become the main liability of his own party—though he doubted such a separation was even possible at this point.

John Zogby then focused on the Democrats, describing an internal battle between the party’s left and center wings that has become an all-out war.

He advised Democrats to stop attacking their own progressives as dangerous socialists, noting that such attacks only provide cannon fodder for Republicans.

He invoked the infamous Willie Horton ad of 1988, which had its roots in Democratic internal warfare long before Republicans used it against Michael Dukakis.

“Drop that immediately,” he urged.

The civil war, he said, is neutering candidates who try to steer a middle ground.

He pointed to Hakeem Jeffries, who stands to become the next Speaker of the House, appearing in Bedford-Stuyvesant in an oversized baseball cap and saying only that “the real issue is affordability” while refusing to attack the mayor of New York or alienate the establishment wing.

“He looked foolish,” John Zogby said.

What works, he argued, is Medicare for All—which polls strongly among Democrats and independents alike—and a strong stand on Gaza and the war in Iran, which currently sits at just 29–30% support nationally.

Jeremy Zogby agreed on Gaza but warned of landmines.

The Democratic Party must balance empathy for Gaza with not appearing to abandon Israel, all while addressing the role of AIPAC and money in politics.

“The Democratic Party, as well as the Republican Party, have taken a lot of money from Israel over the years,” he said. “These are very challenging and complex issues.”

John Zogby closed with a broader historical frame.

He suggested the nation is moving from an era of “the politics of anger”—which he dated from 1992 until recently—into a new phase: “the politics of disappointment.”

Both parties, he said, now share a sense of broken promises and a failure to address the issues that matter most. Voters think their leadership is too old, not necessarily in years but in being out of touch with the conversations happening at dinner tables, barbershops, and beauty salons.

“Both parties are really at a low point in terms of American people trusting them,” he said. “And one of the reasons why it’s so close is that the deal just hasn’t been closed yet.”

He described an electorate that says: “I don’t like Trump, but give me something on the other side. I don’t like the Democrats, and I don’t trust them, but look at Trump and the Republicans.”

With two parties racing toward a concrete wall, he concluded, “that makes for a very difficult choice for people.” Jeremy Zogby summed it up: “Very well said.”

With that, the special anniversary edition of “The Zogby Report” came to a close—a sober reflection on a day of national tragedy, followed by a stark appraisal of a political moment defined not by inspiration, but by disappointment, broken promises, and a deeply unsettled electorate.