Politics in the workplace is no longer something you can avoid. In 2025, every big headline seems to show up in team chats, staff meetings, and one-on-ones. People are tired, nervous, and also hungry for honest conversation.

If you lead people, you have a choice. You can shut political talk down and hope it fades. Or you can learn to hold these moments with more care and skill. That is the work in front of us for 2026.

At The Center, we believe real change starts with people and culture, not policy alone.

Facing Politics in the Workplace With More Skill, Not More Silence

For a long time, the main advice to leaders was simple: keep politics out of work. That advice no longer matches reality. People carry the news in their bodies. Laws, court cases, and public debates affect their families, safety, and paychecks.

Silence does not feel neutral. When leaders avoid hard topics, team members often read that silence as:

• “My pain is not welcome here.”
  
• “If I speak up, I might be punished.”
  
• “The company only cares about some of us.”
  
  

Building skill does not mean every meeting turns into a town hall. It means you:

1. Notice when politics is already in the room.
   
2. Decide when a conversation is needed, and when a simple check-in is enough.
   
3. Have a few clear tools you can use in the moment, instead of freezing or reacting.
   
   

This is facilitation work. You are not there to force agreement. You are there to hold a space that is rooted in equity, care, and accountability.

Support Teams With Many Political Identities

Even in values-aligned organizations, people do not all vote the same way. Some are outspoken. Some stay quiet. Some take every policy change personally. Others seem checked out.

Picture this:

• A staff member comes in shaken after seeing a Supreme Court decision that targets their community.
  
• Another team member, who does not share that identity, says, “I do not get why everyone is so upset; the courts always change.”
  
• The room goes still. Eyes drop to laptops. No one knows what to say next.
  
  

As a leader, your job is to widen the frame and protect those most impacted. You can try:

• Name the impact.
  
• “I know this decision hits some of you very directly. I want to make space for that and also keep us grounded.”
  
  
• Center those most affected.
  
• “If you are directly impacted and want to step back from this discussion, that is okay. You are not required to teach anyone here.”
  
  
• Hold a line on harm.
  
• “We will not question people’s basic rights or humanity in this space, even if we disagree on policy.”
  
  

Supporting diverse political identities does not mean pretending every view is equal. It means you are clear that the safety and dignity of marginalized people are not up for debate.

Set Clear Norms for Hard Conversations

When politics comes up, many teams scramble. People interrupt. Some dominate. Others shut down. A few leave the call and “never want to talk about this again.”

Norms are shared agreements about how you talk to each other. They reduce fear because people know what to expect.

Before you host a political or high-stakes conversation, share simple norms like:

• We speak from our own experience, not in generalities.
  
• We listen to understand, not to win.
  
• We do not question anyone’s lived experience.
  
• We name harm if it happens, and we repair when possible.
  
  

You can turn this into a quick live exercise:

1. Ask, “What do you need to feel safe enough to stay in this conversation?”
   
2. Capture answers in simple language.
   
3. Reflect them back as a short list of norms.
   
4. Get a visible “yes” from the group.
   
   

Then, use the norms in real time:

• “I want to pause. One of our norms is listening to understand. Let us slow this down and let Alex finish their thought.”
  
• “I am coming back to the norm about not questioning lived experience. Let us reframe that comment.”
  
  

Over time, these norms become part of the culture, not just a slide you show once.

Invite Curiosity Instead of Defensiveness

Defensiveness is a normal human response when people feel called out or blamed. In political conversations, it shows up as eye rolls, sharp tones, or long speeches that derail the topic.

Your role is to invite a different stance: curiosity. Curiosity is the choice to ask, “What am I missing?” instead of “How do I win?”

Try these shifts in the moment:

When someone feels attacked

Instead of:

• “Calm down, that is not what I meant.”
  
  

Try:

• “I hear that what I said landed in a rough way. Can you tell me more about how it felt to you?”
  
  

When there is a strong “hot take.”

Instead of:

• “That is wrong, here is why.”
  
  

Try:

• “I am curious what life experiences led you to that view. Are you open to hearing how others experience this issue?”
  
  

When people rush to solutions

Instead of:

• “Let us not get stuck in feelings. What should we do?”
  
  

Try:

• “Before we jump to action, can we sit with what this means for people on our team who are directly impacted?”
  
  

You can also give people simple curiosity prompts to use with one another:

• “What feels at stake for you in this conversation?”
  
• “What is one thing you are still wondering about?”
  
• “What would make this feel more grounded for you?”
  
  

These prompts keep the conversation human and present, instead of turning it into a debate club.

Use Tools for Non-Extractive, Non-Performative Culture Work

Many teams rush to hold a listening session or town hall after a political crisis. These sessions can do harm if they are extractive or performative.

• Non-extractive means you are not taking stories, pain, or free labor from people, especially people of color and other marginalized groups, without giving support, resources, or change in return.
  
• Non-performative means you are not holding visible sessions only to look good, with no real shift in policy or behavior.
  
  

To keep your culture work grounded and ethical, build in these tools:

1. Clarify the purpose before you gather

Do not invite people into a heavy conversation without a clear reason. Share in plain language:

• Why you are meeting.
  
• What is on the table to change.
  
• What is not on the table.
  
  

Example:
“We are meeting to hear how this new law is affecting your day-to-day, and to shape our internal policies in response. We cannot change the law, and we also will not ask you to relive trauma in detail.”

2. Protect people’s energy

Ways to do this:

• Offer multiple ways to share, such as anonymous forms, small groups, or one-on-ones.
  
• Give options to step out or pass on certain questions.
  
• Pay staff or provide time credits if they are helping design or lead the process, especially if they are drawing on their own lived experience.
  
  

3. Tie every story to a concrete action

When people share, they want to know it matters. Close the loop by:

• Naming what you heard.
  
• Naming what you will do, and by when.
  
• Sharing what is still in progress.
  
  

For example:

“From what you shared, we learned we need clearer security policies for staff facing threats, and better mental health support. By next month, we will publish new safety protocols and expand counseling coverage.”

This turns culture work into a steady current for change, not a one-time wave that crashes and disappears.

Why Politics in the Workplace Belongs in Your 2026 Strategy

If you design or lead facilitation, you are already holding complex rooms. Adding politics in the workplace to your 2026 strategy is not about chasing the news cycle. It is about building a culture that can stay present and principled when pressure rises.

Here is how to start weaving this into your plans:

• Build facilitator capacity.
  
• Train more people, not just HR or DEI staff, to hold hard conversations using shared tools.
  
  
• Align policies with your values.
  
• Review your communication, safety, and leave policies through an equity lens. Do they protect those most impacted when political systems cause harm?
  
  
• Schedule regular reflection, not just crisis meetings.
  
• Set aside time each quarter to reflect on how public events are showing up at work, and what you need to adjust.
  
  

When you name this work in your 2026 strategy, you send a clear signal. You are not pretending politics is outside the door. You are preparing your people to meet it together, with more skill and less harm.

Bringing It All Together

Politics in the workplace is not a glitch; it is part of the landscape we are all moving through. In 2026, the leaders most trusted will not be those who never stumble. They will be the ones who are willing to show up, listen, repair, and try again.

You can:

1. Support teams with many political identities, while centering those most impacted.
   
2. Set and use clear norms for hard conversations.
   
3. Invite curiosity instead of defensiveness, in yourself and others.
   
4. Choose tools that are non-extractive and non-performative, and tie stories to real action.
   
5. Name that politics in the workplace is a real factor in your culture strategy, not just a background noise.
   
   

As you plan for the year ahead, ask yourself and your team:

What is one small shift we can make this quarter to hold political tensions with more care and less fear?

Then pick one action from this list, and start there. If you want support, The Center is here to walk with you. You can book a free intro session with our COO, Shafina, to explore an organizational strategy that fits your context. You can also check out the next series of facilitation trainings at The Center to help more people across your organization build these skills with confidence.