Trump Invites Only Republicans To Governors’ Meet, Democrats Left Out Of White House Dinner

Last Updated:February 10, 2026, 10:11 IST

Two Democratic governors - Maryland’s Wes Moore and Colorado’s Jared Polis - were not invited to the White House dinner.

President Donald Trump is hosting an annual meeting with governors at the White House later this month, but he will not invite any Democrats, only Republicans, breaking a long-standing tradition, US’s ABC News reported.

The meeting is part of the National Governors Association (NGA) winter gathering. A spokesperson for the organisation confirmed that only Republican governors will attend.

Governors association expresses disappointment

Brandon Tatum, acting Executive Director and CEO of the NGA, said that the bipartisan White House governors meeting is an important tradition.

He said the organisation was disappointed by the administration’s decision to make it a partisan occasion and added that disinviting individual governors undermines an opportunity for federal-state collaboration.

But, Trump is still planning to host a separate, bipartisan dinner for governors and their spouses at the White House as part of the NGA activities.

However, two Democratic governors – Maryland’s Wes Moore and Colorado’s Jared Polis – were not invited to the dinner.

Why are Democrats not invited? 

It is unclear why Moore and Polis were not invited. Moore also serves as the vice chair of the NGA.

Ally Sullivan, a spokesperson for Polis, said the decision was disappointing for what has traditionally been a bipartisan event. A source close to Polis said he was not given a reason for the exclusion.

Over recent months, Trump has pressured Polis to release Tina Peters from prison after she received a presidential pardon. Peters was convicted on state charges related to tampering with voting systems following false claims about the 2020 election. Trump’s pardon power does not apply to state crimes.

White House response

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the decision, saying the events were White House events and the president could invite whomever he wished.

She said the White House had been coordinating meetings with Democratic governors for more than a week and added that Democrats were invited to the dinner, calling the issue a “non-story".

Moore claims disrespect

Moore said he was not informed why he was not invited to the dinner and criticised the decision in a statement on Sunday.

He said being selected as vice chair of the NGA made it difficult not to see the decision as disrespectful to bipartisan federal-state partnership. Moore also noted that, as the nation’s only Black governor, the exclusion carried added weight, whether intended or not.

Moore later told CNN that the NGA had committed not to recognise the dinner as an official NGA event.

Kentucky Guv refuses to attend

Kentucky’s Democratic Governor Andy Beshear criticised the decision.

He said he would not attend the bipartisan dinner, saying the exclusion of Moore and Polis was wrong. Beshear also said no Democratic governor had been invited to the business section of the event.

News world Trump Invites Only Republicans To Governors’ Meet, Democrats Left Out Of White House Dinner

Read More