Many Democrats reportedly have given up on U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., leading the party out of the political wilderness.
Despite being the party’s leaders in Washington, Schumer and Jeffries have not been able to rally Democrat voters who are unhappy with President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, polls taken since last year’s November election have shown that voters look at the Democratic Party more unfavorably than at any point in recent years.
“I think after seven months of shouting into the wind, Democrats have to stop looking to congressional leadership for answers,” Democrat strategist Christy Setzers said, The Hill reported. “They’re just not up to the moment.”
Instead, governors such as California’s Gavin Newsom, Illinois’ JB Pritzker, and New York’s Kathy Hochul have stepped forward to confront GOP policies that include redistricting and Trump’s suggestion that National Guard troops could be used to combat crime in cities other than Washington, D.C.
“I think Democrats have been forced into the realization that for too long they have neglected some of these fights at the state level,” one Democrat strategist told The Hill. “The road to taking back real political power from the MAGA Republican Party likely does not start in Washington, D.C. The path back for Democrats starts at the states.
“Winning local fights across the country and rebuilding political power at the state level is an important part of the comeback strategy for Democrats.”
It has been reported that Newsom and Pritzker hold aspirations of being the Democrat presidential nominee in the 2028 election.
Maryland’s Wes Moore, Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer, and Kentucky’s Andy Beshear are other Democrat governors who have been mentioned as possibilities for the party’s next national ticket.
A recent Morning Consult survey showed that Newsom has emerged as a top contender in the 2028 presidential primary cycle. The California governor still trailed former Vice President Kamala Harris among Democrats by 10 percentage points, but he led all other named candidates.
“I think part of it is with Democrats in D.C. locked out of actual power, it is easier for governors to show leadership because they can actually pass bills, file lawsuits, try and undo Trump actions with state action,” Democrat strategist Eddie Vale told The Hill.
“But beyond that, with the public so soured on institutions and D.C. overall, anyone who is seen as part of that bubble has a harder time than electeds who are out in states across the country and are seen as distinct from the overall D.C. party brand.”
The last Democrat governor to be elected president was Bill Clinton (Arkansas) in 1992.
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