Democrats are rebranding their national perception in response to voters who not only returned Trump to office but handed the GOP control over both chambers of Congress.
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Several DNC chair candidates have acknowledged that the party needs a more effective manner of communicating to the public upset over the economy and immigration.
“Trump takes office in four days and will immediately start violating his oath,” said Wisconsin Democratic Party Chairman Ben Wikler during a Thursday DNC chair forum. “And in this moment, we need a DNC strong enough to out-communicate, out-organize, out-raise, out-compete, and out-win a GOP bent on rigging this country against working people for the benefit of a tiny group at the top.”
Some of the most high-profile candidates in the running include Wikler, Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party leader Ken Martin, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, and long-shot candidate Marianne Williamson.
Faiz Shakir, another long-shot candidate and a former campaign manager for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), entered the race to challenge the more establishment-minded candidates.
“I believe the central job of the Chair is to change how Democrats are perceived by voters,” Shakir said in a letter to DNC members. “And we all seemingly agree — rhetorically at least — that focusing on winning back America’s diverse working class is of utmost priority.”
Another candidate, New York state Sen. James Skoufis, ended his bid and endorsed Martin.
“I am endorsing Ken because he’s a man of integrity and I have deep respect for his vision, charisma, guts, and undefeated record in statewide races,” Skoufis said in a statement. “I know that he, like me, is laser-focused on winning, not spinning.”
But there is a sense among Democrats that more of the same leadership could continue the hemorrhaging of support.
“I think that what we need, and I don’t know if we’re going to get it, because if the same old typical Democrats that have been around throughout the last part of the 20th century and this century [come with the] same ideas and same old strategies, I think the Democratic Party will sink further,” former Maryland state Sen. Jill P. Carter said.
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How the next leader will handle Trump is one more item that Democrats must contend with.
“The real issue is: How can the Democrats better manage the transformed media ecosystem of the 21st century?” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) said. “Although we had great ground-game canvassing taking place in the swing states and throughout the country, we really got outflanked on the social media and the podcasts and the new communication media.”
Trump proved to be more adept at appealing to nontraditional voters by appearing on multiple podcasts, including Joe Rogan’s, and participating in an X live conversation with billionaire Elon Musk, while Vice President Kamala Harris spent more of her time advertising through broadcast and digital spaces.
Raskin also pointed to the need for the next chair to win back young voters, a bloc Trump was able to make inroads with.
“I’m also interested in somebody who can talk about their plans for making certain that we seize all the advantages that we have with young people,” Raskin said. “I think there is a political battle taking place for the hearts and minds of the young.”
At the DNC forum Thursday, Martin claimed that the public was not convinced that Democrats cared about their concerns.
“Part of the challenge right now is disillusionment of big parts of our base, who don’t feel like we’re standing up and fighting hard enough,” Martin said. “Focusing on the one thing that unites all of them is economics. We need to get back to a working-class agenda that gives people hope that their better days are ahead of them.”
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), who endorsed Wikler’s candidacy, also cautioned that the next chair can only do so much to help revitalize the party.
“I don’t think we want to overhype the power of the DNC chair,” Murphy said. “I want a very capable chair who is going to build a national party that competes everywhere, who understands the power of technology, who understands the information ecosystem deficits that we have with Republicans right now, and who’s going to coordinate with other leaders in the party to build a much better, more populist message than we’ve had.”
As President Joe Biden and Harris leave office, there is no apparent heir to unite the Democratic Party.
A recent Suffolk University/USA Today poll showed that nearly half of respondents couldn’t name a single person they considered to be the leader of the party, and only 10% said Harris.
Several Democratic governors could raise their national profiles as “resistance” leaders against Trump such as Govs. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) and J.B. Pritzker (D-IL).
But some leaders are eschewing that sort of acrimonious battle with Trump after voters put him back in power.
“I am not the leader of the resistance,” said Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD), a rising star in the party. “I am the governor of Maryland, and I’m going to fight for Maryland.”
“I don’t view myself as the leader of the opposition like some might,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI), another possible 2028 presidential contender, told the Associated Press.
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Ultimately, Carter, the former Maryland lawmaker, warned that a new national leader can communicate a new vision that meets the needs of the public.
“I think the Democratic Party has to, one, listen to what the will of the people is,” Carter said. “I think they have to begin to promote better and bolder economic policies, and then they have to explain them to people. They have to do a better job with media and communications.”
