The votes are in and millennial optimism is back with all its props: avocado toast, BuzzFeed quizzes, a stomp-clap-hey playlist, and, of course, a Coexist sticker.
A blue tsunami swept the 2026 midterm elections. The Democrats won their first senate seat in Kansas since 1932, and flipped the notoriously red state of Texas blue, taking the governorship and a Senate seat, eventually winning control over both chambers of Congress, sparking widespread celebration.
The blue festivities continued beyond the late-night victory parties, flooding social media platforms with thousands of posts, in which users reclaimed a bygone era of optimism and the collective feeling of hope and possibility.
“This is what millennial optimism felt like,” one user said on X. Another added, “As an elder millennial, I’ve forgotten how to handle optimism.”
For most, translating the feeling into a post is easiest done by referencing iconic pieces of media, from the websites one visited to the songs that filled their playlists “back in the day.”
“Millennial optimism is back baby. I’m blasting Florence and the Machine bass boosted the dog days ARE over,” one user said in a post with more than 18,000 likes.
Another user added, “they’re gonna bring buzzfeed back.” Another replied, “resistance is back so hard, this app is about to be renamed twitter.”
Others have taken to sharing how the excitement feels IRL, with one user posting a video from a club in Austin, where partygoers are singing along to Fun.’s “We Are Young” while election coverage fills the screens.
For many, the return of optimism comes along with a series of cultural moments this year that have teased “woke is back.”
“Woke being back means that it’s actually the perfect time for a glee reboot you guys didn’t have your third eye open,” one user said, referencing a forthcoming reboot of the popular 2010s television show Glee.
Others referenced the reboot of Lena Dunham’s millennial-focused series Girls: “Girls and Glee returning was the sign. We just were too scared to see it.”
The next generation of hopecore
The optimism is not just for the millennials who actually experienced the Obama days as young adults—Gen Z is joining in on the hopecore as well.
“I finally understand how this feels,” a user said on X, alongside a video of a 2016 Tony Awards performance of The Battle of Yorktown from Lin Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton.
A user replied, “everybody shut up its gen z’s turn for millennial optimism.”
Gen Zers—who romanticized millennial optimism earlier this year through old Instagram filters, twee outfits, and edits with 2010s songs—are jumping in with their own style, driven by irreverent sarcasm and hyperbole.
Some flipped Republican talking points—like pushback on pronouns and diversity—on their heads, turning them into celebratory posts.
“We are going to have pronouns you xeople won’t believe,” one user shared in a post with 69,000 likes.
Another added, “Blue wave so strong, they’re already saying if you don’t have your pronouns back in your email signature by noon tomorrow, Cory Booker will show up at your parents house and make your mom do the Nae Nae.”
Others revived old memes or reclaimed the term “lib.”
“Feel like i just fell out of a fucking coconut tree,” a user posted on X, referencing Kamala Harris’s viral 2024 meme.
Another added, “I’ve libbed out before but i don’t think i’ve ever libbed out quite like this before.”
