Three lessons Democrats should learn from this defeat

After vice president Kamala Harris and running mate governor of Minnesota Tim Walz lost the election to the president-elect Donald Trumpthe Democratic Party will have to consider which strategic areas contributed to the defeat.

With a core campaign message of deporting illegal immigrants and using tariffs to restore American manufacturing, Trump was able to build a coalition largely made up of older voters, rural voters, white voters and voters without a college degree, whose majority for four demographic groups voted. according to the Associated Press.

So what lessons can the Democratic Party take from this defeat for future elections?

Reconnect with the working class

Since the Great Depression, the Democratic Party has marketed itself as the party of the working class, which would expand the social safety net and support unions and workers’ rights.

But since his first bid for president in 2016, Trump has built a base of loyal working-class supporters who abandoned Democrats after years of industrial decline.

Senator Bernie Sandersa vermont independent working with Democrats and won re-election Tuesday night, issued a damning statement Wednesday afternoon about the actions of the Democrats.

“It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party that has failed the working class finds that the working class has failed them,” Sanders wrote. “First it was the white working class, and now it’s also Latino and black workers.”

Jared Abbott, director of the Center for Working-Class Politics, said Newsweek that working people felt disconnected from the Democrats for a long time.

“The Democrats have portrayed themselves as the party that is going to deliver material benefits that improve the lives of the working class… And that is simply not the reality that Democratic presidents have achieved despite some key reforms,” Abbott said.

While Abbott said certain policies, such as president Barak ObamaThe Affordable Care Act (ACA) has benefited working people. He said Democrats have culturally lost some of their base by focusing on wealthier, better-educated voters.

“Democrats are seeking more affluent, more affluent, and more educated voters, and many working-class people see them as not meaningfully interacting with each other,” Abbott said. “And that is coupled with the lack of material gain that the working class feels.”

The messaging, Abbott said, is essential to connecting with working people as a demographic.

“Much of Trump’s appeal to the working class was visceral and emotional,” he said. “He echoed the anger and pain they felt for being left behind. Democrats must find candidates who can effectively relate to the working class in a way that most Democrats are generally unable to do. not rocket science. It’s no mystery what to say.”

Change their digital strategy

With the help of tech billionaire Elon MuskTrump was able to effectively use digital platforms to reach millions of voters.

Musk, who spent $44 billion on the purchase Tweetthe social media platform he renamed X, used the platform for months to amplify the Trump campaign’s message.

Trump not only had a favorable social media environment, but also used podcasts to reach a broader audience.

His three-hour performance in October at the Joe Rogan experiencethe largest podcast in the world, has been viewed 47 million times on YouTube. User comments praised the “unedited” and “uncensored” version of Trump turned out.

He also did online interviews with Theo Von and Tucker Carlson, the next two largest podcasts on Spotify by audience, which were viewed millions of times and likely reached many voters, some young, who would otherwise not be involved in mainstream media.

Harris made some podcast appearances, including on Call her daddythe number five podcast on Spotify. However, she went no further Joe Rogan after they couldn’t agree on terms.

While Trump’s podcast interviews reached millions, the Harris campaign, in a contrasting effort to appeal to younger voters, created a Fortnite map (a popular shooting game), in which weapons were banned, and attracted only a few hundred players.

‘It’s time for the Democratic Party coming to terms with the fact that a large majority of the American public lives in a media environment Fox to Twitter to podcasts – that functions as one Republican propaganda machine,” Matt McDermott, a Democratic strategist, wrote on X. “Ignoring this reality is no longer a tenable solution.”

Win back Latino voters

Harris does not appear to have done enough to reinvigorate one of the nation’s fastest-growing and increasingly influential voting blocs.

While a majority of Latino voters supported Harris, Harris fared worse with Latino voters, according to the Associated Press Joe Biden did so in 2020, with Latino men in particular shifting 14 points toward Trump.

Gabriel R. Sanchez, a professor of political science at the University of New Mexico, told us Newsweek that Democrats should focus on economic issues to win back Latino voters.

“Latino voters have been deeply concerned about the state of the economy over the past two election cycles, with many reporting in surveys that their financial situation has worsened as they struggle to keep up with inflation,” Sanchez said. “Many Latinos who supported Trump in this election simply had more confidence in Trump and Republicans to prioritize the economy and tackle inflation, despite not supporting his overall policy agenda or his character.

“This is an important point because the Trump administration should not assume that their strong performance with Latino voters is a mandate to advance their agenda. I’ve been collecting survey and focus group data among Latino voters over the past two years, and it’s clear that Latinos do not support banning abortion, killing the ACA, or mass deportations. Latinos want Trump and the Republican Party to lower prices and improve their families’ personal financial situations.

“This gives Democrats a way to win back more support among Latinos, including Latino men who have swung toward Trump and Republicans over the past two presidential cycles.”