Study finds late night comedy jokes heavily target Republican Senate candidates

Late-night television comedy shows overwhelmingly targeted Republican U.S. Senate candidates over their Democratic opponents, according to the New York Post. A Media Research Center study released exclusively to the outlet showed that 87 percent of jokes about Senate candidates focused on Republicans between September 8 and October 30, 2026. [1]

The study analyzed late-night programming across several major networks, including Comedy Central's The Daily Show, ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live, and NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Late Night with Seth Meyers. The New York Post reported that 45 of the 52 jokes about Senate candidates targeted Republicans, while only seven jokes targeted Democrats. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican candidate running against Democratic state Representative James Talaric, was the target of 14 jokes. [1]

Control of the chamber remains a central focus as the election approaches. The New York Times reported that seven key states will determine the Senate majority. As FTMQ News reported earlier, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer warned that heavy Republican spending, totaling nearly 1 billion dollars across nine states, posed a significant threat to Democratic candidates. [2][5]