A growing group of former Trump supporters is warning that the MAGA coalition is showing signs of fracture, with defectors predicting a political backlash that could reshape the 2026 elections.
Rich Logis, the founder of a group called Leaving MAGA, claims disillusionment inside the movement is accelerating and says the shift has been years in the making.
“There’s going to be a massive turnout next year,” Logis said. “I think it’s going to be an electoral revolt against Trump and MAGA.”
The organization, which Logis launched after publicly renouncing its own past support for Trump, has expanded rapidly. The group now claims leadership in 20 states and has raised more than $100,000 toward a $250,000 fundraising goal for 2026.
Logis says many former supporters describe a long internal struggle before finally breaking away.
One of those voices is Jennie Gage, a 51-year-old former conservative influencer who says her loyalty to MAGA was once “rock solid.”
Gage admitted she previously held extremist views and actively opposed gay marriage. She now says the movement’s rhetoric crossed a line.
“I just saw the hate,” Gage said. “It reminded me, literally, of Germany. It reminded me of Hitler.”
Gage says she now receives thousands of messages from people expressing regret over their support for Trump. “So many people who were dyed-in-the-wool MAGA are now saying, ‘forget this,’” she said.
Younger voters are also showing signs of fatigue. Steve Vilchez, a 22-year-old Gen Z voter from Illinois, said he backed Trump for nearly a decade before voting for Kamala Harris in 2024.
Raised in a liberal area, Vilchez said he initially viewed Trump as a political disruptor, according to the Daily Mail.
“I thought he would drain the swamp and rebuild the system,” he said.
Vilchez said the turning point came when Trump’s rhetoric began conflicting with his family’s reality.
“My family are immigrants from Mexico,” he said. “It became harder to balance what Trump wanted with how it affected my personal life.”
He also pointed to economic frustration.
“He ran on fixing the economy and we’re not seeing it,” Vilchez said. “Gas prices are still high. Life is more expensive.”
Polling appears to support those concerns. A late-December survey found nearly half of voters say life has become more expensive under Trump’s current term, including a majority of independents. Rising costs have become a drag on the president’s approval ratings.
The movement’s critics argue the backlash is exaggerated. Republican strategist Ron Bonjean said it’s unlikely MAGA voters will abandon Trump in large numbers. “It is very difficult to believe MAGA voters would give up their support so easily,” he said.
Still, internal data shows the Republican Party is now evenly split between traditional GOP voters and MAGA-aligned supporters. That shift has raised alarms among both sides ahead of next year’s midterms.
Asked what he would say to Trump directly, Vilchez was blunt. “He doesn’t understand Americans,” he said. “He understands elites. He’s never lived the life of a blue-collar worker.”
For Gage, the warning to remaining supporters is simple. “When you see a red flag,” she said, “walk the other way.”
