Vaccines become a 2026 midterm election issue amid measles outbreak

As the United States experiences its worst measles outbreak in 35 years , a handful of Democrats are leaning on their backgrounds in medicine and public health to pitch themselves as potential checks on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Richard Pan, a doctor and former state senator running for a California congressional seat, said he’d be well equipped to question Kennedy and other health officials in hearings after he successfully passed two state-level bills Kennedy opposed that tightened exemptions to childhood vaccine rules. Annie Andrews, a pediatrician running against Sen. 17 speech at a conference hosted by Children's Health Defense, the anti-vaccine organization he founded and formerly led, Kennedy told the audience they have “a friend at the White House.” He referenced recent measles deaths in the context of rare incidents of people being harmed by vaccines. “In our country we care about rare illnesses and deaths. We care about every child who dies from measles.

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Scoop News DeskUnited States · Published Saturday, September 19, 2026 at 12:11 PM UTCUpdated Saturday, September 19, 2026 at 3:03 PM UTC

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Lahn’s campaign said in a statement that he “will not ban cancer treatments, or ban all MRNA vaccines” but he has “discussed pulling the COVID shot from the market.” In Florida, Republican Gov. They get headlines,” he said. “I’d ask you to care about children who are dying or suffering or being injured by vaccine injuries.” The Department of Health and Human Services didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. The August order marked a change of course for the administration, which had pulled back from its focus on vaccines amid warnings that it posed a political risk.