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After losing power in Washington, Democrats vote this weekend on a new party leader who they hope will help them win it back. Here's NPR's Stephen Fowler.
STEPHEN FOWLER, BYLINE: For about eight hours in a hotel ballroom in snowy Detroit earlier this month, the future of the Democratic Party - or at least the Democratic National Committee - was front and center.
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JAIME HARRISON: As we consider the next four years, Americans will look to the voices of our chair, vice chairs, treasurer, secretary and national finance chair to hold the Trump administration accountable.
FOWLER: That's current DNC chair Jaime Harrison - who isn't running for a second term - kicking off a forum for candidates seeking to serve as an officer of the DNC. Because Democrats were on the losing end of key national races in November, figuring out what went wrong in 2024 and how to make changes, as a result, will be one of the first jobs for new leadership. But they're not starting from scratch. Harrison says the party has built up its infrastructure and data over the years to be equipped for future campaigns, especially at the state level.
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HARRISON: No DNC has ever invested more resources into strengthening our state parties than this DNC.
FOWLER: At this forum and others held virtually in January, activists and party leaders from across the country and across the ideological spectrum have largely shared the same ideas for how the party should course correct. That includes the two leading candidates for chair, who both currently lead state parties in the Midwest. And both say Democrats need year-round organizing and better messaging to take on Trump's second term.
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KEN MARTIN: My job is to get out there and define the Republicans. I will take the low road so they can take the high road. I will throw the punches so they don't have to.
FOWLER: Minnesota's Ken Martin says as chair, he'd go on offense while the party uses its deep bench of elected officials to share what Democrats stand for. Wisconsin's Ben Wikler envisions a Democratic Party that wins back voters by focusing their fight on issues that are most tangible - like health care and education - and would be a behind-the-scenes cheerleader.
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BEN WIKLER: Our candidates are the people who carry the message to voters. A DNC chair needs to energize volunteers, needs to inspire people to run for office, needs to inspire people to donate, needs to lift people up. Then, we need to mobilize.
FOWLER: Hashing out strategies for organizing and fundraising are important, long shot presidential candidate turned long shot DNC chair candidate Marianne Williamson says. But there's also the looming urgency of Trump back in power that Democrats need to reckon with.
MARIANNE WILLIAMSON: We're dealing with Donald Trump. He is not an ordinary politician. Ordinary politics will not be enough to take this on.
FOWLER: Without control of the White House or majorities in either chamber of Congress, the new chair will be one of many faces of the Democratic Party that's still figuring out how to move on from rejection at the ballot box in November. A final candidate forum is Thursday night, before the 448 voting members of the DNC hold their election on Saturday.
Stephen Fowler, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF RODRIGO Y GABRIELA'S "IXTAPA") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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