Why Americans Hate the Democratic Party
Most voters aren’t rejecting Democrats over the culture war. They’re rejecting them because they don’t deliver.
40 Articles by: Jared Abbott
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Jared Abbott is a researcher at the Center for Working-Class Politics and a contributor to Jacobin and Catalyst: A Journal of Theory and Strategy.
It’s Still Possible to Rebuild a Working-Class Majority
Labor organizing can’t succeed at scale without a supportive legal and political environment, created by majoritarian coalitions that can win reforms, confront corporate power, and prove to skeptical workers that progressive governance delivers.
Economic Populism Is Powerful, but Democrats’ Brand Is Toxic
Populist economic policies grounded in the value of work and commonsense notions of fairness may be able to win over constituencies that have abandoned Democrats in recent decades. There’s a problem though: the Democratic brand is trash.
What Americans Think of Democratic Socialism
A new national poll shows democratic socialism has made enormous strides over the last decade. But to grow beyond blue strongholds, its champions will need to continue to anchor campaigns in bread-and-butter economics.
What Mamdani’s Win Can (and Can’t) Teach Us
Zohran Mamdani’s astounding triumph shows the power of bread-and-butter economics and the bankruptcy of the Democratic establishment. But how many of its lessons can be applied nationally?
Rust Belt Voters Are Sick of Both Parties
Polling shows Americans are ready to support independent populists running on economic platforms. But what they don’t want is anything associated with the Democratic Party’s brand.
Can We Rebuild Mass-Membership Political Parties?
Today advocacy groups and consultants influence political parties more than voters and members. In The Great Retreat, political scientist Didi Kuo shows that this has hollowed out democracy and facilitated the rise of the Right.
A Better Future Depends on Reversing Class Dealignment
There’s no forging a durable working-class progressive coalition without winning back the blue-collar working class.
Is There a Fourth Way for the Democratic Party?
Third Way Democrats are right to obsess over the Democrats’ increasing troubles with working-class voters. But their solution is more of the Clintonian economic centrism that drove away working-class voters in the first place.
Here’s How Economic Populism Can Win
To win competitive districts, left-wing candidates must challenge both economic oligarchy and cultural elitism.
The Working Class Has Left the Building
Dealignment from the Democratic Party now extends to every demographic group.
Analysis: Kamala Harris Turned Away From Economic Populism
Pressed by influential corporate advisors, Kamala Harris ran away from a winning economic populist message and ended up losing a campaign. We have the proof.
Dealignment: What Is It and Why Does It Matter?
All of a sudden, mainstream politicians and pundits are talking about class dealignment in American elections. We at Jacobin have published on dealignment for years — and wrote a short guide about why it’s such a pressing political issue.
Liberal Dominance of Cultural Institutions Hurt the Left
A new book, Polarized by Degrees, argues that college-educated voters have come to dominate the Democratic Party and cultural institutions while Americans without a college degree feel increasingly alienated by the party’s technocratic worldview.
The Working Class Has Left the Building
Dealignment from the Democratic Party now extends to every working-class demographic group. Here’s some important data that shows the depth of the problem.
A Matter of Degrees
Trump’s strength with non-college-educated voters is sinking progressives.
Why Do So Many Workers Love Trump?
Racism and xenophobia are a part of why so many ordinary workers were won over to Donald Trump, but that’s far from the whole story. A careful study breaks down how Trump spoke to economic grievances and personal experiences.
Rural Voter Blues
Contrary to what you’ve heard, progressives actually can reach rural voters.
An Economist’s Guide to Beating Neoliberalism
In Left Behind, economist Paul Collier tells a convincing tale of how market fundamentalism created inequality. He offers welcome solutions to global and regional disparities — but gives little attention to the kind of politics required to realize his aims.
Class Dealignment Is the Defining Political Challenge of Our Time
The evidence is overwhelming: workers are abandoning the Democrats and center-left parties around the world. Class dealignment is radically changing politics, and the Left needs a program to win the working class.