Beto O’Rourke, the Democratic candidate for Senate who is running against Senator Ted Cruz, in Texas. Photograph by Bill McCullough

Democrats are running surprisingly competitive races across the Southeast and the Southwest, in states that Republicans have long considered safe, including Texas, Tennessee, and Arizona. In Florida and Georgia, two proudly progressive African-American candidates—Andrew Gillum and Stacey Abrams—are running strong gubernatorial campaigns against conservatives endorsed by President Trump. Ben Wallace-Wells joins Dorothy Wickenden to discuss how Democrats are faring in Southern red states, and how the Democrats’ most powerful donors are supporting candidates who appeal to younger voters.