Democrats Fear for Democracy. Why Aren’t They Running on It in 2022?

One party is running democracy and elections in 2022, which is not a Democrat.

Despite the broad consensus on the left, the country’s most respected institutions have problems with President Biden and other leaders. Serious warning The fact that protecting the right to vote and fair elections is paramount is that the majority of Democratic candidates are moving away from these issues in the course of the campaign.

Instead, they focus on bread and butter economic topics such as inflation and gas prices.Continuing to win the election must come first, the idea goes — and poll Focus groups show that voting issues are far below the list of voters’ most urgent concerns.

“You can’t buy a lot of voting groceries,” said Trey Martinez Fischer, a member of the State Representative of Texas who organized the Democratic Party. Flight from state With a failed effort to block in July Republican election bill.. “Last summer, nothing more important than voting rights, but the world has changed and we have a conversation about our economy, inflation, and the cost of commodities.”

But as the conversation changed, Democrats handed over a great deal of political territory to American democratic structures to Republicans.riding A lasting wave of anger In the 2020 elections, despite many Republican candidates attacking Mr Biden and Democrats over rising living costs, they put what they call “election perfection” at the forefront. rice field.

Many Republican candidates falsely claim in debates, social media posts, and TV ads The 2020 race was stolen From former President Donald J. Trump Shared view By voters of many parties.Mr. Trump’s ally continues Attempting to revoke certification for 2020 resultsAnd he asked the last election a litmus test to win his coveted support in the Republican primary.

“It’s important for us to maintain our fever in terms of exposing stolen elections,” said Peter Navarro, a former White House adviser to Mr. Trump. Said in Steve Bannon’s podcast last month.

There is no evidence of meaningful fraud in the 2020 elections and consistent findings From the first day after voting Since then, through a series of reviews for almost 18 months. From Mr. Trump’s Attorney General, William P. Barr Wisconsin To Wyoming I admit that Mr Biden was a legitimate winner.

A big energy gap between the two parties regarding elections and voting — this happens during the middle of the year Republicans dominate — Worried about some Democrats, especially black Democrats who were disappointed by the party’s party Cannot pass federal voting protection While in power.

Angela Lang, Managing Director of the Black Leaders, which organizes for the Milwaukee community, said:

Republican state legislators have urged a restructuring of the country’s electoral system, in part in response to their bases and Mr. Trump. 34 laws restricting voting access In 19 states last year.

Republican candidates are more promising: Governor Kay Ivy of Alabama seeking reelection, I’m posting an ad She said the election was stolen and emphasized the voting restrictions she signed the law.Her main challenger, Lindy Blanchard, attacked Mr. Ivy at some point. Biden said he won quite a bit..

“Republican bases and all Republicans are concerned not only with voter integrity, but also with voter security,” said Corry Bliss, an adviser to several Republican candidates. “If you need an ID to buy NyQuil, you need an ID to vote for the election.”

According to media tracking firm Ad Impact, democracies have posted television ads that pledge to work to increase voting rights for a small number of candidates running for public office at all levels of government.

In both parties, candidates are following voters.

Democrats said pollsters, focus groups and organizers were most worried about inflation when they were knocking on the door.apart from Democratic macroeconomic data When painted rosy, Americans are broadly unwell about the economy. This includes Republicans, but they are also keen on election issues.According to polls Almost three quarters I believe Mr. Biden’s victory was illegal.

Incumbent Democrats and the White House I’m trying to make a case Mr. Biden oversees the decline in the unemployment rate as wages rise. Inflation masks both of these trends, and the Democratic Party is responsible, so it’s a difficult strategy.Ann NBC poll Last month, voters found that they were far more likely to blame Biden for inflation than for pandemics or corporate price increases.

Rep. Pete Aguilar of California, who is both the Commission and the leader of the House of Representatives on January 6, said, “Everyone should start at the basic level of’protecting democracy and supporting the change of power.’ I want. ” He and the other leaders wanted the candidate to “talk about an important issue and it’s economical.”

Some Democrats have tried to make voting rights a major issue in the United States.When Texas legislators fled Austin to Washington last summer, they I was ashamed of the Democrats in the Senate To pass the radical expansion of the right to vote. In January, when Mr. Biden set the same goal, he I gave a soaring speech in Atlanta Compare today’s republicans with the civil rights villains George Corley Wallace and Bull Connor.

Neither effort worked.

Voting rights are now virtually disappearing as a top priority for both voters and candidates. In an AARP poll of a 50-year-old voter candidate In the old one released this month, voting rights were number nine on the list of the most important issues facing the country, right behind immigrants and before racism.

The party’s most famous voting advocates are training their attention elsewhere.Stacey Abrams, a leading Democratic candidate for the Governor of Georgia Focus on far less voting rights than she once did In her speech, she avoids her main issues to spend more time working on topics such as expanding Medicaid and helping small businesses.And in Arizona, Secretary of State Katie Hobbes So the person who defended Mr. Biden’s victory in 2020Voters and fellow Democrats said they would rather talk about other things.

“The Democrats I’m talking about are fed up with this fight,” Hobs said. “They focus on addressing real-world issues that affect people’s daily lives, rather than re-litigating the 2020 elections.”

Democratic strategists also advise clients to move on from talking about expanding voting rights.

“The Democratic Party needs to educate the voter community on the new state legislation, so we need to choose from legislative agendas that promote voting rights,” said a former managing director of the Democratic Parliamentary Campaign Committee, which represents a large number of clients. Dansena says. Candidate for the parliamentary seat.

Since the Senate’s efforts stagnated in January, few Democrats have aired television ads pledged to increase voting access.Two Georgian Democrats confront key representatives Lucy Macbus When Carolyn BourdeauxBoth are on air, emphasizing support for the failed federal voting bill.

The most specific candidate who has promised to increase voting access is Neville Breakmore, secretary of Jefferson County, Kentucky, including Louisville.

He has challenged the incumbent Republican Party, which has been in power in a county since the Clinton administration. 59 percent of voters I supported Mr. Biden.Mr. Breakmore There is a TV ad We want more polling stations, free rides to polling stations, and more early voting. All of these are within the authority of the county clerk’s office.

“It’s not work, it’s not gun violence. There’s a more important issue, but who you vote for affects everything else,” Blakemore said in an interview. “There is little better than voting. It’s not sacred, but boys, it’s really big.”

Daniel Squadron, Managing Director of the State Project, a group focused on helping Democrats gain control of the Legislature, said avoiding this topic was a Trump-inspired Republican. He said it was equivalent to abandoning the debate about the right to vote for.

“Leaving that conversation in the state to those who are trying to undermine it greatly jeopardizes democracy,” he said. “We need to make sure that people are aware of how realistic the threat to democracy is.”

But other Democrats taking office this year are taking a more realistic approach.

“Everyone has a duty when it comes to saving our democracy,” said Texas State Representative Jasmine Crockett. Run for a safe Democratic parliamentary seat Based in Dallas. “But now people are doing their best to win. They are definitely paying attention to polling.”

For some Democrats, unless voters living from salary to salary can somehow convince voters who have plans to end inflation and are serious about doing so, the party in power There is concern that it may punish.

“It’s not an easy task,” said Jeffrey Pollock, a Democratic pollster working with House candidates. “The first is to tell voters what you understand because you are experiencing the same kind of inflation and having the same pain they feel, and you have to deal with it. We need to convince them that they have passed some very important economic laws in order to do so, and more importantly, there is more to do. “

Even in competition with the Republicans to overturn the 2020 elections, Democrats have emphasized to voters concerns about kitchen table issues.

Kelly Lou, City Councilor, Depia, Wisconsin, Summoned by the parliamentary commission Despite Mr. Trump’s defeat in the state, she investigated the January 6 attack because she was one of the Republican alternative voter slate submitted by a Republican in Wisconsin.

That’s why Ruh was challenged by real estate agent Pamela Gantz, who served as a pollster in the 2020 elections and was backed by the Wisconsin Democratic Party.

when Local newspaper I asked Mr. Gantz to clarify the most important issues facing the city, but she did not say she supported democracy. Instead, she emphasized her support for building a bridge over the Fox River.