Summer Lee to Deliver Progressive Counterpoint Against Trump in State of the Union

By Jim Thomas | Friday, 20 February 2026 05:22 PM EST

Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa., will deliver the Working Families Party response after President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address on Feb. 24, offering a high-profile progressive counterpoint as Democrats line up separate rebuttals and debate how visibly to confront Trump on a national stage.

The Working Families Party has used its annual response to elevate figures it sees as rising voices on the left. Past speakers have included Democrat Reps. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Delia Ramirez of Illinois.

“Congresswoman Summer Lee is the kind of leader this moment demands,” Working Families Party National Director Maurice Mitchell said.

“She’s fearless, rooted in working-class communities, and unafraid to take on both MAGA extremism and corporate power.”

Lee, first elected in 2022 after serving as a state legislator, said she plans to focus on Americans who feel battered by Washington.

“I’m going to elevate the voices of the people … who are angry, scared, and fed up with an administration that’s done nothing to help and a lot to hurt everyday people,” Lee said.

“And I’m going to say what too many politicians won’t: The system is rigged, the obscenely wealthy are profiting from it, and working people deserve more than scraps,” she added.

“Now more than ever, we need a political home for people who are ready to fight back against Trump’s corruption and cruelty, and the corporate politics that made him possible.”

Lee’s remarks will land alongside the main Democrat response, to be delivered by Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, who has been aligned with the party’s moderate wing.

Spanberger said Americans “are contending with rising costs, chaos in their communities, and a real fear of what each day might bring.” She said she would lay out what Americans “expect and deserve, leaders who are working hard to deliver for them.”

The competing responses come as Democrats head into 2026 with an unsettled internal contest between the party’s left and center, including primary fights in which progressives are challenging establishment-backed candidates and, in some cases, targeting incumbents.

Beyond the televised rebuttals, Democrats and allied groups are planning counterprogramming around Trump’s speech.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has urged Democrats to either attend without protest or boycott the address, rather than stage demonstrations inside the House chamber.

Progressive groups are also planning at least two events featuring Democrat members of Congress, billed as the “People’s State of the Union” and the “State of the Swamp,” while some Democrats still want to register opposition from inside the chamber.

Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.