Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, the victorious Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate, speaks onstage during her election night watch party at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis Nov. 3, 2026 in Atlanta, Ga. (Megan Varner/Getty Images)
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Proponents of guaranteed income programs are declaring victory following the midterm elections after several key allies won statewide and federal offices across the country.
Five former members of the Mayors for a Guaranteed Income (MGI) coalition — along with officials from partner organizations — won election to higher office, while voters approved multiple direct-cash ballot measures nationwide.
The most prominent victory came in Georgia, where MGI founding member and former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms was elected governor, becoming the first Black woman elected to lead the state.
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Michael Tubbs, former Stockton, California, mayor, is the founder of Mayors for a Guaranteed Income. (John Sciulli/Getty Images for Economic Security Project, Inc.)
“Support for guaranteed income has been steadily growing since we launched the first pilot in 2019,” MGI President Michael D. Tubbs told Digital.
MGI noted that more than 60 bills involving cash-based policies similar to guaranteed income have been introduced across 15 states.
Tubbs, who served as mayor of Stockton, California, from 2017 to 2021, also founded Counties for a Guaranteed Income (CGI) and Legislators for a Guaranteed Income.
“Previous polling showed a majority of voters support direct, unconditional cash assistance, and now we’ve seen several champions who led guaranteed income programs at the local level ascend to higher office in the most recent elections,” Tubbs said. “I hope the newly elected Democratic House and Senate will continue to prioritize affordability and make guaranteed income a permanent policy for Americans.”
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Mayors and Commissioners Move to Capitol Hill
Two current MGI members secured seats in the U.S. House of Representatives:
- Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss was elected to represent Illinois’ 9th Congressional District.
- Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti won Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District.
Neither Biss nor Cognetti responded to Digital’s request for comment.
Meanwhile, Counties for a Guaranteed Income (CGI) — MGI’s sister network — saw two of its prominent members elected to higher office:
- Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller was elected to represent Illinois’ 2nd Congressional District.
- Montgomery County Councilmember Will Jawando, a CGI founding member, was elected Montgomery County Executive in Maryland.
None of the other newly elected officials responded to Digital’s requests for comment.
Local Funding Models Take Shape
Cook County, Illinois, previously made headlines for establishing what officials described as the nation’s first permanent guaranteed income program at the county level. To sustain the program after federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) expired, the Cook County Board of Commissioners approved $7.5 million for guaranteed income as part of its fiscal year 2026 budget.
Tubbs previously told Digital that the federal government should follow Cook County’s lead by establishing a federal direct-cash assistance program.
“We have wars in Iran, regime change in Venezuela. We get it, the healthcare system and the big, ugly bill,” Tubbs said in March. “So people are saying that social safety is being frayed.”
“That wealth is further being taken from the many and given to the few, and there has to be a government solution because this is a government-caused problem … inflation, unaffordability, this is all a direct result of government policy,” Tubbs added.
According to MGI, guaranteed basic income initiatives have expanded across the country, with more than 100 pilot programs launched since 2018. MGI has grown into a coalition of more than 150 mayors, promoting pilots that offer eligible participants payments of as much as $1,000 per month with no spending restrictions.
However, with federal pandemic relief dollars drying up, questions remain about whether local governments can afford to make these programs permanent through local taxes.
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Digital spoke with Michael D. Tubbs, the president of an organization called Mayors for Guaranteed Income, to discuss why cities have been launching pilots of guaranteed income programs. ( Digital)
Advocates Push Federal Action
Other progressive advocacy groups are pushing for permanent taxpayer-funded guaranteed income programs at both state and federal levels.
The Economic Security Project (ESP), founded in 2016 by a network of entrepreneurs, activists, and philanthropists, has backed over 100 guaranteed income pilots nationwide.
ESP director of cash initiatives Shafeka Hashash directed Digital to a post highlighting election results that favored guaranteed income advocates.
“Michigan. Dr. Abdul El-Sayed is a longtime cash champion. He spoke at the 2024 GI [Guaranteed Income] Now conference and contributed to our 2025 report ‘The Resilience Factor: Cash as a Tool Toward Better Health for Young Families.’ In one of the toughest Senate races in the country, his campaign centered on a single tagline: ‘Money out of politics. Money in your pocket,'” Hashash wrote.
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Abdul El-Sayed, who won Michigan’s U.S. Senate race, is among the candidates celebrated by guaranteed income advocates following the 2026 midterm elections. (Sarah Rice/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
El-Sayed, who won Michigan’s U.S. Senate election, has supported direct-cash programs aimed at reducing poverty. While his campaign platform centered on universal healthcare through Medicare for All, raising the federal minimum wage and strengthening safety net programs, cash advocates view his election as a key policy win.
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Hashash also highlighted veteran allies returning to Capitol Hill: “Ohio. Sherrod Brown, a longtime champion of the Child Tax Credit, returns to the Senate with new allies. Eight of the 10 new Democratic senators are on the record supporting the CTC and included it in their platforms.”
