By BILL BARROW
ATLANTA (AP) — As he concludes his time as chairman of the Democratic Nationwide Committee, Jaime Harrison is downplaying his get together’s November loss to President-elect Donald Trump and arguing Democrats averted even larger losses that events in energy have confronted all over the world.
However he acknowledged that Democrats should do a greater job of promoting the get together’s priorities and accomplishments for the working class. He additionally referred to as for continued nationwide investments in get together infrastructure and higher use of non-legacy media.
“I can’t tell you how disappointed I am that Kamala Harris is not going to be the next president of the United States,” Harrison mentioned in an interview Monday. However “the political pendulum in this country has been swinging swiftly, back and forth,” he added, and “we got to buckle up and get ready for it” to proceed.
Harrison made comparable arguments in a memo being distributed Tuesday to Democratic Get together leaders and donors across the nation.
“Although Democrats did not achieve what we set out to do, Trump wasn’t able to capture the support of more than 50% of the electorate and Democrats beat back global headwinds that could’ve turned this squeaker into a landslide,” Harrison wrote, evaluating Democrats’ losses within the U.S. to the extra sweeping defeats that events in energy suffered in democratic nations all over the world for the reason that coronavirus pandemic and international inflation.
It’s not stunning, after all, for a md to defend his get together’s performances even after disappointing elections. Harrison, President Joe Biden’ s choose in 2021 to steer the nationwide get together throughout his time period, and different high Democrats have been sharply criticized after Trump’s victory, significantly by progressives who argue the get together is seen as having deserted working-class voters.
Harrison pointed to victories for Sens.-elect Ruben Gallego in Arizona and Elissa Slotkin in Michigan, and the reelections of Sens. Jacky Rosen of Nevada and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin.
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, proper, greets DNC Chair Jaime Harrison after cellphone banking with volunteers on the DNC headquarters on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Washington. (AP Picture/Jacquelyn Martin)
Republicans nonetheless ousted Democratic senators in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Montana on their strategy to a majority. However Harrison famous the GOP’s Home majority can be threadbare — the ultimate depend is pending — and that Democrats flipped some Republican seats.
On the state stage, Harrison famous Democratic romps in North Carolina’s statewide places of work, legislative positive aspects in a conservative state like Arkansas and stripping Republicans of outright management of the Alaska statehouse.
“It was a mixed bag,” he mentioned.
Trump’s success might not be simply replicated by GOP
Trump swept all seven battleground states towards Harris, the Democratic vp, and received the favored vote for the primary time in three presidential runs. The president-elect minimize into key Democratic constituencies: folks of colour, youthful voters and union supporters.
He gained a bigger share of Black and Latino voters than he did in 2020, most notably amongst males below age 45, in line with AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of greater than 120,000 voters. And his coalition more and more included rank-and-file union members, a essential constituency in states like Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.
Harrison mentioned Trump has the power to scramble conventional coalitions however not remake them completely. He acknowledged Trump’s enchantment but framed him as a singular determine whose attain can’t be replicated simply, if in any respect, by different Republicans.
“It’s the same thing with Barack Obama, right? Sometimes in politics, they’re cultural figures … that can build different coalitions,” Harrison mentioned. “And those coalitions don’t last once they step off of the dais.”
Democrats want to higher promote accomplishments
If there’s a obvious hole for Democrats, Harrison mentioned, it isn’t essentially in coverage positions however in speaking accomplishments and priorities to voters. He argued that Biden’s legislative agenda — tax overhauls, new vitality investments, pandemic help — helped the very working-class voters who propelled Trump.
“Maybe we gotta do a better job of selling,” he mentioned, tipping his cap to Republicans’ use of podcasts and all method of focused media to succeed in voters. “There’s a lot of things that we can do in that space,” he mentioned.
Requested whether or not which means wading extra eagerly into conservative areas or Democrats beginning extra shops and reveals of their very own, Harrison mentioned, “All of it.” He added that he desires to take a position a few of his time on that subject after leaving workplace in February.
A warning to not bump South Carolina’s major down the calendar
Harrison has no plans to weigh in on the election for his successor. The tons of of DNC members will solid their ballots in February amongst a rising discipline, together with two well-regarded state chairs from the higher Midwest: Ken Martin of Minnesota and Ben Wikler of Wisconsin.
In contrast to Harrison, who ran the DNC as an extension of Biden’s political operation on the White Home, the brand new chairman may have extra of a clean slate and a freer hand — however maybe extra stress in a celebration with out a singular chief.
The DNC chief, nevertheless, may have a extra direct hand in setting the get together’s presidential nominating calendar for 2028. The committee at Biden’s behest moved South Carolina’s major forward of Iowa and New Hampshire, and moved Michigan to the opening weeks of the calendar, elevating extra racially numerous states over the overwhelmingly white states that led the method for many years. South Carolina 4 years in the past delivered Biden his first major victory after he misplaced Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada.
Harrison, who’s Black and a South Carolina native, inspired his successor to not undo Biden’s overhaul given the significance of Black voters to the get together.
“We moved around the schedule to put more diverse voices at the table to decide the most powerful person on the face of this planet,” he mentioned. “You can’t pull that back. You cannot make major changes without there being some consequences for the most loyal demographic in this party.”
Initially Printed: December 3, 2024 at 9:38 AM PST
