Can Democrats Turn Their 2022 Around?

Voter Agency

Mobilizing voter agency is crucial for Democrats as they face challenging midterms. Anat Shenker-Osorio argues that Democrats should focus on empowering voters by emphasizing their role in creating change, rather than merely highlighting party achievements or criticizing Republicans 1. She believes that effective messaging should inspire voters to see themselves as active participants in the democratic process.

Vote is a verb. It's an action that we need people to take more than it's a belief that we need them to hold.

--- Anat Shenker-Osorio

This approach requires a unified message that resonates with the base and persuades swing voters, countering the right-wing media's echo chamber 2.

   

Voter Coalitions

Democrats may need to adjust their rhetoric to shift voter coalitions in response to changing political dynamics. Ezra Klein suggests that Democrats could learn from Donald Trump, who successfully shifted the Republican electorate by alienating some while exciting others 3. This strategy involves clearly defining who the party is and who it is not, potentially alienating parts of the coalition to attract new supporters.

To shift the electorate's sense of who you are, don't you have to make pretty clear who you're not?

--- Ezra Klein

Sean McElwee emphasizes the importance of picking fights over policies that resonate with voters, such as climate change and social security, to energize the base and attract young voters 4.