Democratic former House Representative: Democrats need to learn a lesson from election

CV NEWS FEED // Democrats’ approach to winning over voters needs to change in order to regain popularity, according to Democratic former House Representative Daniel Lipinski.

Lipinski wrote in an article published by Real Clear Politics that the Democratic Party’s decline in popularity has occurred over several years, as evidenced by a high voter turnout for Trump in 2016. 

“At that time, some of my colleagues who had seen many traditional Democrats in their district vote for Trump spoke out. They said that working-class voters were tired of feeling looked down upon by Democrats because of policies they supported, what they believed, or even who they were,” Lipinski wrote.

He added, “But instead of changing course, Democrats doubled down by embracing a more ardent progressivism and demanding that everyone follow.”

According to Lipinski, Democrats continued to distance themselves from the working class over the next several years by embracing far-left policies like decriminalizing illegal immigration and defunding the police.

He wrote that Biden won in 2020 because of “bumbling by President Trump and congressional Republicans,” but added that progressives continued to support the party’s left-leaning policies in a manner that further alienated the working class. The 2024 election showed what most Americans’ priorities were.

“Donald Trump went on to become just the second Republican in 36 years to win the popular vote, thanks in part to significant support from non-white working-class voters, particularly Hispanics,” Lipinski wrote. “As Democrats try to figure out what to do next, it is folly to believe that all the party needs is ‘clarity of message,’ as former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA) recently claimed.”

Instead, Lipinski said that Democratic Reps. Ro Khanna, CA, and Seth Moulton, MA, provided better advice for their parties.

“For our economic message to be heard, we must show common sense on issues of crime and the safety of families and not shame or cancel those who may have honest disagreements with us on a particular social issue,” Khanna wrote in an article published by the Boston Globe.

Moulton similarly said in a statement to Boston 25 News, “We lost, in part, because we shame and belittle too many opinions held by too many voters and that needs to stop.”

Lipinski wrote that these two politicians’ awareness of the party’s need to rethink its priorities “are hopeful signs,” but added that “Democrats must do more than pay lip service to change.”

He later wrote, “Voters are not fools, especially working-class voters who continue to feel that the country is going in the wrong direction and that they always get the short end of the stick. They may not watch day-to-day politics closely, but they understand who and what the Democratic Party now seems to really value. Only time will tell if the party has finally learned a lesson.”