Midterms Boost Right-to-Repair Momentum
Original: The Midterms Were a Pretty Good Sign for the Right-to-Repair Movement
Why This Matters
DMCA Section 1201 reform could reshape who controls consumer hardware long-term.
The 2026 midterms produced bipartisan wins for right-to-repair: Iowa elected senator-elect Josh Turek, Minnesota may seat rep Jake Johnson, and St. Paul voters backed a renter repair measure by wide margins.
Right-to-repair didn't dominate midterm headlines, but its advocates came out ahead. Iowa senator-elect Josh Turek and likely Minnesota state representative Jake Johnson both ran on repair-focused platforms, particularly around farmers and agricultural equipment. Meanwhile, St. Paul voters passed a renter's right-to-repair measure with overwhelming support. The movement cuts across partisan lines—farmers, consumers, and wheelchair users all have skin in the game.
Advocates see a broader opening. PIRG's Nathan Proctor told WIRED by text: "A political climate where people want policies that stand up for the little guy, help reduce unnecessary costs, and work in a bipartisan way—that's a very good environment for right-to-repair."
The anger is about more than broken phones. Tariffs, a memory shortage, and an unpopular war with Iran have driven prices up broadly, feeding frustration with subscription creep and software-locked devices. Kevin O'Reilly of advocacy group Fulu points directly at Section 1201 of the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act—the statute that made circumventing digital locks potentially criminal—as the central legislative target. "If I were a new or returning member of Congress," O'Reilly told WIRED, "I would see DMCA reform as a no-brainer."