Democrats had better do this or we are well and truly screwed:
Democrats are rebuilding their strength in the “blue wall” states that former President Trump won in 2016, raising the party’s hopes in a region that will prove critical to races up and down the ballot next year.
The party is riding high after key victories in states like Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin over the past six months, signaling a newfound momentum after Trump’s win called into question the party’s standing in the rust belt.
But Democrats say they’re not taking the states for granted and still have more work to do as President Biden looks to clinch a second term and several senators in those states face reelection.
“It’s clear that the path to the White House, the path to retaining a Senate majority cuts through the Midwest,” said Kaitlin Fahey, a Democratic consultant who led the successful bid to host next year’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago and former chief of staff to Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.).
Meanwhile, Republicans clearly have their sights set on pummeling the “blue wall,” choosing to host the Republican National Convention in nearby Milwaukee next year.
“Both on the Republican and Democratic sides, it’s indicative of their choice how critical they view the path of the Midwest, the Rust Belt, some describe it as flyover states,” Fahey said. “Those are states and constituencies who cannot be forgotten about; who have been at times felt left behind, especially in previous administrations.”
The party made its focus on protecting the traditional “blue wall” clear earlier this month when Biden and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) selected Chicago to host the 2024 party convention. Governors of Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota each signed onto a letter supporting Chicago’s DNC bid in which they said the party “must do everything we can to ensure the blue wall becomes an impenetrable blue fortress.”
In addition to being swing presidential states, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin are also home to competitive Senate races this cycle.
While the nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates these Senate races as “lean Democratic,” that does not mean the party is complacent going into these elections — especially given the GOP primary fields are still solidifying over a year and a half out from Election Day.
“This is Pennsylvania, the work never stops,” said one Pennsylvania Democratic strategist. “We will not be abandoning any part of the state.”
In Pennsylvania, Democrats made gains up and down the ballot in 2022, winning the suburbs while making a play for rural areas usually dominated by Republicans.
“From a GOP perspective, those margins that Trump was able to do in 2016 are good, but it’s also [because] he was able to have much better margins in the suburbs,” the strategist said.
Michigan was also a major success story for Democrats at the ballot last year, but like Pennsylvania Democrats, Michigan Democrats say that’s a sign to keep going.
“Make no mistake, Michigan is still a purple state and if we turn our backs on it, if we get complacent, it can go in the wrong direction,” said Andrew Feldman, a Democratic strategist who works closely with Michigan Democrats. “Michigan Democrats across the board from the state Legislature all the way up to the top of the ticket in the state have done the work since Trump won in 2016 to rebuild the party and rebuild that infrastructure, and I think you’re going to continue to see them aggressively organize.”
Wisconsin Democrats saw a major statewide victory earlier this month when Milwaukee County Judge Janet Protasiewicz’s victory handed a majority to liberals on the state’s Supreme Court for the first time in 15 years. On top of that, Democrats also point to incumbent Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s (D-Wis.) reelection win in 2018, two years after Trump flipped the state in 2016.
Biden has to win all three of those states plus two of Arizona, Nevada and Georgia to win in 2024. I know it’s hard to believe, after everything we’ve been through, that it will come back to that but it will. Luckily the Democrats seem to understand that.