The 2022 campaign story was set. Then Russia invaded Ukraine.

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The global implications of the war in Europe has forced candidates in both parties to adjust their political playbooks to account for a rapidly evolving new issue that, at its core, has united voters in support of aiding the Ukrainian resistance to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression, but also underscored the rigid partisan divide that defines modern American politics.

For Democratic candidates who are likely to sink or swim on public perception of President Joe Biden’s job performance, Russia’s war on a fledgling democracy on its doorstep has presented a new opportunity to derail a despairing narrative that many believe ends with Democrats losing both chambers of Congress — while also potentially advance Biden’s climate agenda and reviving his poll numbers. Elected Republican officials and candidates, meanwhile, have at once signaled their support for the harsh sanctions imposed on Russia by the Biden administration while criticizing the President for not acting aggressively enough — all the while continuing to hammer Democrats over domestic economic difficulties.

Biden, in remarks earlier this month, sought to put the onus for rising gas prices on the Russian leader.

“Make no mistake: The current spike in gas prices is largely the fault of Vladimir Putin. It has nothing to do with the American Rescue Plan,” Biden said, seeking in the moment to divorce his signature Covid relief spending bill from rapidly increasing energy costs.

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Source : cnn