Sen. Elizabeth Warren is preparing to step back into the spotlight with a clear goal: shaping the Democratic Party’s future in her populist image as internal battles over the party’s economic direction intensify.

Warren, who largely kept a low profile over the past year, is not laying the groundwork for a 2028 presidential bid. Instead, allies say she wants a stronger hand in defining what Democrats stand for as they look toward the midterm elections and the next presidential cycle.

She plans to make that case forcefully Monday in a speech at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., marking what amounts to a political reemergence. According to excerpts shared with Axios, Warren will warn Democrats against courting wealthy elites as they search for a way out of recent electoral setbacks.

“Democrats have a choice to make,” Warren is expected to say. “And the first step in rebuilding trust is to admit that we have to choose.”

At the heart of Warren’s argument is a growing ideological divide within the party. One faction favors a moderate, pro-business approach aimed at winning back disaffected Trump voters and rebuilding ties with donors in Silicon Valley and the tech sector. The other embraces a more confrontational economic populism centered on taxing the rich and dismantling what progressives describe as a rigged system.

Warren is firmly aligned with the latter. She endorsed New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani during his campaign and is expected to echo his rhetoric in her speech.

“Yes, Democrats need a big tent,” Warren will argue, according to the preview. “But there are two visions for what a big tent means.” One, she will say, involves softening rhetoric to accommodate “fabulously rich” interests. The other calls for aggressively challenging economic inequality and pursuing structural change.

The debate has only sharpened as Democrats remain unified on some fronts — such as opposing President Trump and defending Affordable Care Act subsidies — while splintering on broader economic issues. Some party leaders have moved closer to the cryptocurrency industry and major donors, while others have rallied around wealth taxes and openly embraced “tax the rich” messaging.

Warren has also been willing to wade directly into intraparty contests. She recently endorsed Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan in a Democratic Senate primary, backing the progressive candidate over Rep. Angie Craig, a more moderate contender.

Beyond rhetoric, Warren is backing her vision with money. She announced last week that she is donating $400,000 to 23 Democratic state parties in hopes of flipping seats in the midterm elections. She has also raised more than $1 million for Democratic candidates so far in 2025.

Behind the scenes, aides say Warren has spent months thinking about what “big tent” politics should mean in practice. That reflection intensified earlier this year when some Democrats floated the idea of welcoming Elon Musk into the party amid his brief feud with President Trump — a suggestion that reportedly alarmed Warren before Musk later reconciled with Trump.

Warren’s reassertion comes as other progressives have maintained a higher profile. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has drawn large crowds on his “Fighting Oligarchy” tour and recently swore in Mamdani at his inauguration. By comparison, Warren’s public appearances have been more limited, though she headlined select events in 2025, including a Democratic National Committee town hall in Nashville and a rally in Austin focused on democracy.

Still, Warren has a track record of exerting influence even without holding the party’s top office. After losing the 2020 presidential primary, she helped shape the Biden administration by playing an outsized role in personnel decisions during the transition.

Now, allies say, she believes the moment demands a louder voice.

In her upcoming speech, Warren plans to frame the party’s crossroads in stark terms, presenting Democrats with what she sees as two diverging paths — and urging them to choose economic populism over accommodation with wealth and power.