The massive losses for Democrats in the 2024 elections left the party in shambles as it tried to find a new path forward. Despite the current hyperbolic red scare sensationalism about the Democratic Socialists of America or communism taking over the country, the truth is much simpler: the current political climate is not much different than any other time in history. Key issues are driving the discourse as voters struggle to find candidates that offer real solutions, not the status quo.
The panic from establishment politicians on both sides of the political aisle is unfounded. Like the State Department’s report attempting to tie anti-war movements, progressives, and any progress the U.S. has seen since Jim Crow to communism and Cuba, it’s a fictional tale that serves to bolster the status quo. That is, to keep corporations ahead of people. The use of culture wars, such as fear of Sharia Law, the latest political boogeyman alongside immigrants, is used precisely for this reason: to ensure corporate dollars keep lining lawmakers’ pockets.
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Indeed, progressives have seen major wins across the country, largely due to economic populist messaging that resonates with everyday people struggling to make ends meet. Let’s also not leave out the feigned media panic, bringing even more attention to them. But centrist Democrats are also winning, which shows a party filled with a diversity of thought that should be embraced, not shunned or villainized, as so many political pundits have done since the 2024 election.
After major losses in 2024, plenty of blame went around. Despite lower voter turnout and the lack of enthusiasm stemming from copious issues with Democratic campaign strategizing, Latinos were blamed, Black men were blamed, leftists have been blamed, and now progressives as a whole are blamed under the guise of panic about socialism and communism. At no point have consultants, strategists, and pundits looked inward. Just recently, Jim Clyburn blamed Black voters for Kamala Harris’s loss, highlighting how the party is still not listening to voters.
Analyzing why Democrats lost so big in 2024 has been a hot topic, as has the debate about what the party should do moving forward. Since then, consultants and pundits across the board have suggested drifting further from the party’s once-core liberal identity to appeal to more conservative voters. However, moving to the right in appeasement hasn’t been very popular, and neither has the centrist position that argues for bipartisanship with a Republican Party platform that has largely embraced bigotry and white nationalism. A key indicator here is Senator John Fetterman’s horrid popularity numbers, both nationally and in his home state.
What many voters seemingly fail to realize is that, like Republican political consultants of the 1970s and 80s, current conservative lawmakers are targeting programs for the poor for a reason. We’re simply in a time where they’ve all but perfected the craft of hiding it behind culture wars and fearmongering. This strategy, that former chairman of the Republican National Committee and former advisor to presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush, Lee Atwater, infamously admitted to in 1981, speaks to a mentality that is clearly ever-present.
“You start out in 1954 by saying, ‘Ni**er, ni**er, ni**er.’ By 1968, you can’t say ‘ni**er’—that hurts you, backfires,” Atwater said. “So you say stuff like, uh, forced busing, states’ rights, and all that stuff, and you’re getting so abstract. Now, you’re talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you’re talking about are totally economic things, and a byproduct of them is, blacks get hurt worse than whites.…” Atwater continued. “‘We want to cut this,’ is much more abstract than even the busing thing, uh, and a hell of a lot more abstract than ‘Ni**er, ni**er.’”
On behalf of his candidate, George H.W. Bush, seven years later, Atwater ran an ad using the National Security Political Action Committee, blaming presidential candidate Michael Dukakis for the escaped Massachusetts convict, Willie Horton. The ad was racially inflammatory, pushing a story about Horton “repeatedly raping” a white girl. Atwater’s effort wiped out Dukakis’ double-digit lead and led to Bush winning the election. Today, it’s no different when we hear the fears of “Sharia Law,” immigrants not “assimilating,” or Latinos being inherently violent.
When approaching the intersection of race and politics, it becomes clear that we are in no better place today than we were in Atwater’s days. Republicans have done this for so long that they have mastered the art of being abstract and using culture wars. The embrace of a new enemy, the Latino immigrant, has duped poor white people more than ever. Their weapon of choice is the embrace of key aspects of the racist and antisemitic “great replacement” conspiracy theory.
Meanwhile, growing numbers of Latinos and members of other nonwhite groups were baited into these ideas by bigotry against the LGBTQ community, women, and immigrants. Playing on the machismo found across racial and ethnic lines, white nationalist ideas have been worming their way into various communities by appealing to patriarchal thought and hiding behind false interpretations of Christianity – a likely reason why we saw higher turnout numbers for Trump from various nonwhite groups in 2024.
Seems dire, right? The growth of white Christian nationalist ideas is evident. Whether some regular people understand that many of the views they support bolster these extremist ideas or not, it must be addressed. Unwittingly or intentionally, they are helping believers usher in the far-right extremist’s dream of a white ethnostate. As members of poor and marginalized communities who voted for Trump have realized, they have made themselves targets of various regressive policies. The many voters who continue to express regret about voting for Trump raise even more questions about nationalism’s true popularity.
In other words, white Christian nationalist politics are not so favored that Democrats should try to meet their proponents in the middle, as political consultants have suggested. Instead, many voters simply need to be walked back. If so many people feel duped, as social media posts and reports suggest, shifting to the right sounds even more nonsensical. If anything has become evident with current discourse, it is that more and more voters are not thrilled about standing on the sidelines, nor are they willing to meet fascism in the middle.
So, what do voters want? Great question. Let’s look at some key issues that political consultants should consider before lecturing anyone about the future of not-racist/bigoted politics.
Healthcare
Concerns about the quality and costs of healthcare have been at the forefront of political discourse for decades. Today, it remains one of the top issues across demographics, with concerns about cost growing each day. A recent Gallup poll shows that a whopping 74% are “somewhat” or “very dissatisfied” with the availability of affordable healthcare, and 84% said they personally worry “a great deal” or “a fair amount” about healthcare availability and affordability. Sixty-four percent said they believed the government is responsible for making sure “all Americans have healthcare coverage.”
Interestingly, in 2025, a Pew Research poll also indicated that two-thirds of U.S. voters say the government is responsible for ensuring everyone has healthcare. Despite the divide about how to implement it, most of those who didn’t agree it’s the government’s responsibility said Medicare and Medicaid should continue, highlighting support for accessible government-funded healthcare in some way or another, across the political spectrum.
Another recent healthcare survey from The Century Foundation reports that 53% of voters have had to cut back on care or take on debt to deal with healthcare costs. Twenty-two percent reported having to delay or avoid going to the doctor, while 17% took on credit card or medical debt to cover health costs. According to the Century Foundation, 78% of those polled believe it should be a federal government priority to offer a public healthcare option.
Housing
Housing costs have been an issue of contention for many years. Today, those concerns are greater than ever. In a recent CNBC survey, respondents showed that the cost of housing is a top political issue, equal to healthcare. While many Republicans blame immigrants for the housing crisis, the truth is that Wall Street manufactured it, beginning years ago. Currently, there are roughly 16 million homes sitting empty (28 homes for every homeless person in the U.S.), more than enough to quell housing costs and do much more.
But the solution for the big banks isn’t to bring down costs; it’s to develop build-to-rent communities, leaving homeownership as far out of reach as it is today. While many like to point the finger at everyone but corporations, voters are demanding action. That action starts with reining in corporations. The voting public is aware that they can’t count on corporate news to report on these issues accurately as the same private equity groups behind the housing crisis also have a tight grip on the U.S. media ecosystem.
Economy
The economy has been a disaster for most voters in the U.S., with few exceptions: billionaires and tech bros who seem to be doing well. But for those who aren’t wealthy and are in the middle class, the working class, and impoverished communities, the economy has brought much pain, particularly for disadvantaged groups. As the cost of living multiplies and wages remain stagnant, voters don’t seem to have much confidence in either political party, with only 39% saying Democrats or Republicans have “a lot of” or “some good ideas” for the economy.
A recent Marist poll shows that 60% of voters disapprove of Trump’s economy, and he only has a 33% approval rating on the economy, his lowest ever in a Marist poll. Similarly, a recent Gallup poll shows that 67% of voters believe the economy is getting worse, while only 19% believe it’s good, and a meager 3% rate economic conditions as excellent. Highlighting the difficulty of escaping the economic conditions, 65% of voters said it’s a bad time to find a quality job.
It seems that the economy is an easy issue to embrace and offer solutions for. The voting public is struggling, and after a presidential election that didn’t meet people where they were, the economy will be a great icebreaker to start talking to voters and listening to their needs.
Immigration
Solutions to immigration based on voters seem simple enough. According to a June Gallup poll, 75% of voters favor “allowing immigrants living in the U.S. illegally the chance to become U.S. citizens if they meet certain requirements over a period of time.” The same poll shows only 39% support “deporting all immigrants who are living in the United States illegally back to their home country.” Quite the contrast from the policies we’ve seen over the last several years.
Many policy proposals have been offered to reform immigration in the U.S. One of the more popular pieces of legislation in 2013, which had broad bipartisan support, was blocked by the Republican Speaker of the House from Ohio, John Boehner. That proposal offered humane solutions and reforms that were not solely focused on inhumane enforcement, as they are today. A February Ipsos poll showed that 62% said current efforts “to deal with unauthorized immigration go too far.”
Additionally, if the United States were to refrain from creating mass migration crises, as it did with Trump’s “maximum pressure” sanctions during his first term, and that President Joe Biden kept in place, it would immediately curtail future so-called “border crises.” While getting to the “root cause” of the “migration crisis” during Trump’s and Biden’s terms never addressed this, we have to confront and prevent how the U.S. creates them to begin with.
The vast majority of voters in all polls support a secure border; however, how to implement that varies greatly, with dwindling support for a border wall and a record number (79%) considering immigration to be good for the country.
Foreign Policy
United States foreign policy has been at the forefront of political discussions for decades. The current era isn’t much different. While much focus is placed on Israel and AIPAC, as it should be due to their advocating for the use of U.S. taxpayer dollars to directly fund a genocide, it’s not the only country in the foreign policy discourse. The United States spends an exorbitant amount of money on foreign policy while U.S. voters struggle to make ends meet. However, AIPAC does have an outsized influence over U.S. foreign policy discourse, as seen in its exorbitant spending to influence elections, making it a legitimate political target in today’s discourse.
In addition to Israel, the voting public is all too aware of what the U.S. does on a global scale, and it’s rarely ever good. Not only is sending weapons to escalate and perpetuate wars a major point of contention today, but so is the abundant use of unilateral U.S. sanctions that kill more than 500,000 people a year globally. As if to further illustrate that point, the Trump administration is building on decades of bipartisan oppression against Cubans, highlighting precisely how sanctions affect everyday people all over the world.
The exorbitant waste in the Pentagon, the ever-growing national debt, and the economic struggles at home are intricately connected. Voters see that now more than ever, and despite some choosing not to care in favor of their favorite candidate, they likely know the reality and cannot deny it. To gloss over these atrocities and the gross amount of money being thrown away overseas, establishment Democrats have weaponized Islamophobia, alongside cynical claims of antisemitism and racism, rather than listening to voters.
United States foreign policy is ultimately dictated by U.S. corporate interests. This helps boost the country’s economic standing in the world, while enriching the greedy. If it controls resources, other countries will be forced to do business with the United States. This is a key component of colonization and imperialism, not unlike what we’re seeing globally. For example, we’re seeing this unfold in Latin America today, as the U.S. interferes in the region’s elections and installs far-right Trump sycophants across the region.
Conclusion
For Democrats to succeed, they must forget the culture wars and focus on core issues. Every city and county will have its own problems, and those must be addressed. But key issues are what resonate the most, and that’s where candidates should focus on with genuine solutions, not pandering. If a candidate is taking corporate money, it’s going to be hard to make the case on any of the top issues mentioned here. Voters want corporations reined in; they do not to be told how to live and act.
The singular common denominator here is corporate exploitation of resources and people, both at home and abroad. More and more people are making the connections between domestic and foreign policy, and they’re seeing that the same corporations and oligarchs in control of our news media ecosystem are also deep in the pockets of people making foreign policy decisions that benefit them and their portfolios.
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Failing to address these issues and taking tangible action to correct the biggest problems facing voters today is a recipe for failure. As Republicans ramp up the hate machine as the midterms draw closer, and as they opt to continue promoting culture wars over talking about actual policy, they stand to lose many elections, as even many Trump supporters are frustrated with his second term as president. Many feel duped by both Republicans and Trump, and rightfully so.
Republicans ignoring the Epstein files and providing cover for Trump speaks for itself and underscores how little conservatives even bother to meet people where they are anymore.
I am an independent freelance journalist and stroke survivor trying to support my family. I have written hundreds of articles on policing, immigration, race, and Latin America. My work has been featured in outlets such as Unicorn Riot, The Antagonist Magazine, Latino Rebels, The Wire, and more. I’m also on TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Mastodon, and Threads. To support my work, become a paid subscriber or donate via Venmo, PayPal, or Cash App.
The Democrats will succeed in gaining a mess of seats, and both establishment types and Social Democrat types will win because this is a sea change year, the likes of which we haven't seen in 50 years.
That 1974 Congress did get some decent things done, like exposing more of things like MK-Ultra, but six years later, Reagan got elected.
The Social Democrats are also inherently imperialist, so we'll see people like Abdul el-Sayed saying no arms to Israel on the one hand but arms to Ukraine on the other get elected.
I just want to see them cut off all support to Israel and to end the attempted Israeli takeover of our military, and forcing Trump to resign would be nice. But that's about it. Well, they'll probably actually do something about data centers, too, so that would be good.
IOW, the Democrats can't help but be an improvement next year in spite of themselves, but we need to focus on local support networks and organizing, too. We have to get the MIC under control and dismantle the Empire, and the Dems ain't gonna do that on their own.
The build to rent housing policies, and many of the other plans for American cities, are the "Get Big or Get Out" that Rusty Butz used on family farms under Nixon, being repurposed to do the same thing to urban America.